Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Hi Startupnation,

I`m trying to increase traffic flow to a new program called 5%Blue.

:10 Second Pitch_

You can now help the Surfrider Foundation raise money by doing your shopping on Amazon. (Books, Apparel, Electronics, etc) All you need to do is visit www.5percentblue.com FIRST, click the link to Amazon, make your purchase and 5 percent of your total will be donated by Amazon directly to Surfrider on that visit.

My Question to the Forum_

How can we find Amazon`s Heavy Users? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!!!

Support Our Oceans!

First let`s think about who your target market is.  Is it anyone who shops at Amazon or is it people who care about protecting the oceans?  In my opinion, it`s the latter.

It sounds like you are focusing on finding Amazon shoppers.  But Amazon is so big that all sorts of people shop there.  You have to find a niche within that market.  And that would be the people who care about your cause.  I suggest targeting those people, whether they have shopped at Amazon or not.  If someone is inspired to do it, they may just make their next purchase at Amazon.  If they want to do it and already shop there, then even better!

Keep in mind that your program isn`t about e-commerce.  It`s about the emotional attachment that some people share with your program.

And another point, I think your site looks great but could do a much better job of explaining what "5% blue" means.  I didn`t get it and had to click around your site too much to get an idea of what you do.  In fact, your "10 second pitch" above says it better than your site, except that it doesn`t explain the program very well.

All very good points. Thanks so much Steve!

Besides a MySpace page, postings on forums, and a mention on the Surfrider newsletter... has anyone heard of a different communications vehicle that might help get our message across? It`s always hard to compete for voice share with a limited budget but maybe someone knows of or has heard of an effective guerrilla campaign that might be appropriate?

If you had a limited budget (very limited budget) :) how would you promote a service like 5%Blue?

Any advice, guidance, comments, suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers & Happy New Year!!

If Amazon itself is donating the money, why not ask them for a report or a monthly feed of people who buy books or products about the oceans? Does Amazon share customer email addresses?