Friday, May 22, 2009

WEBSITE CRITICISM

When I launched my website, www.FunnyPhotosContest.com, I had expected to make a lot of money. Unfortunately, I have earned almost nothing. And so, my business has turned into a hobby. Yet, I need to keep in mind my viewers on the other hand do see it as a business and so when I receive any criticism I must remember it is business not personal.

Each month, I send an email to all my previous contestants, to invite them to view the new contest. I also allow them to easily remove themselves from my mailing list by simply replying and typing unsubscribe. Nevertheless, I felt a bolt of shock, when one of my rather “loyal” contestants sent an email to unsubscribe and included the comment, “Your contest sucks now!”

Of course I initially felt awful. But I know that successful business owners always strive to keep their customers happy. And so, I sent a reply to tell her I was sorry to hear of her dissatisfaction and to inquiry what prompted her comment. Well you can imagine what a pleasant surprise I received when she apologized. She said, she thought it had been an automated message and never suspected that a real person would read it. She explained the contest had previously been a lot of fun. But now it seemed that fewer people entered the contest and the photos weren’t as funny. In addition, she said she would continue following the contest a little longer and even invite some of her photographer friends to enter.

By Hannah --www.FunnyPhotosContest.com a photo contest for cute or funny photos and photo captions.

No comments: