1. How did you become interested in Ecommerce? In other words, what motivated you to establish a web presence? In 1996 when national health statistics indicated that nearly half the U.S. population was obese, we saw an opportunity to address a critical need in a new way. By providing completely custom-tailored diet programs and advice over the Internet, eDiets.com could help people realize their weight loss goals regardless of their geographic locations and schedules in a cost effective manner.
2. What is the overall goal or mission of your website(s)? Founded on the belief that a private, simple, and fast "Your Diet, Your Way" online approach is better than driving to the local diet center, eDiets.com seeks to continually leverage the power of the Internet to create personalized online subscription-based healthy living plans to all dieters and health seekers. eDiets.com strives to become the Internet's foremost online “destination” offering the most complete line of diet, fitness and motivation solutions for men, women and parents of overweight children.
3. How do you market your site(s)? We use a mix of vehicles to market eDiets.com programs and services, including online banner advertising, direct email, television advertising, public relations and a variety of viral marketing strategies such as electronic newsletters, referral programs, affiliate programs, greeting e-cards, and personal member Web pages. In a further innovation to keep expenses at a minimum, we developed a software system that allows us to monitor the effectiveness of each of our online advertising campaigns and other promotions in real-time. This allows us to continually test and optimize the performance of each marketing tool, thereby increasing both the click-through rate and sales conversion.
4. If you could only offer one piece of advice about ECommerce to our readers, what would that be? The old adage remains true, even relative to eCommerce - "buyer beware." The abundance of online information regarding one’s health and nutrition can be counterproductive. By making it easy for anyone to disseminate information, the Internet has caused an “obesity of information” on almost every conceivable topic – some of it legitimate, some not. One ‘killer app’ of the Internet is that consumers can find specific information of interest through online resources that offer a highly personalized and relevant experience. This is exactly the approach that has proven successful in the health, nutrition and fitness category. Your body, health and lifestyle are unique, and only by providing customized and credible content can any diet or exercise program succeed.
5. Is there anything else you would like to share with our readers? eDiets.com has created an online destination where consumers can choose from 20 popular diet plans, have the plan personalized for their unique needs, and get support from a professional staff 24/7. Adopting this unique and unconventional multi-brand strategy has clearly differentiated eDiets.com from its competition both on and offline.
The company recently launched “eDiets Solutions” giving subscribers access to all of eDiets.com’s on and offline support services including online meetings, support groups and chats, mentor programs, peer circles, personal profiles, toll-free telephone support and a live online help desk. eDiets.com has also adopted an innovative magazine format to leverage the popular communications strategies of leading newsstand publications. This coupled with the significant refinement and expansion of the company’s content, program choices and membership plans keep eDiets.com at the forefront of the online health category.
Alison Tanner, Chief Strategist - eDiets.com - www.eDiets.com eDiets.com, a leading diet and healthy living destination, offers professional advice, information, products and services to consumers seeking to improve their nutrition and fitness.
© 2004 - Heidi Richards is the author of The PMS Principles, Powerful Marketing Strategies to Grow Your Business and 7 other books. She is also the Founder & CEO of the Women’s ECommerce Association, International www.WECAI.org (pronounced wee-kī) – an Internet organization that “Helps Women Do Business on the WEB.” She can be reached at www.HeidiRichards.com.
|
