SEO is marketing and marketing is sales. If you could put yourself in front of an entirely new audience that’s happy and excited to be able to spend money with you… And you have zero risk, a 1% merchant fee why wouldn’t you do it?
More importantly this is good for SEO. I know, I know… I’ll get backlash for saying this, but… There are hundreds of directories out there that will be more than happy to link to your site because you now accept cryptos! Directory links aren’t worth what they once were; however site’s like: Best of the Web, YahooDir, Business.com, and DMOZ still carry weight with the big 3 SE’s. Not to mention hundreds of thousands of people per year still search ‘the internets’ via directories.
Let’s take a quick look at the number of subscribers in the three main sub-directories on Reddit.
135k + 20k + 87k = 242,000+ potential new clients! Let’s take a look at Paypal really quick. According to Statistic Brian there are 341,497 websites currently accept PayPal. Why would an online retailer do this? Know your audience. From an e-commerce standpoint I know that PayPal charges you 3% for the added flexibility of being able to accept PayPal. Most of the larger e-comm’s that we work with have been able to negotiate their merchant accounts to 1.8% – 2.5%. While that’s great, Cryptos are only 1%! And NO CHARGEBACKS!
What is Bitcoin?
What is Litecoin?
What is Dogecoin?
Overstock.com was the first big retailer to start accepting Crypto’s (BTC) At the beginning of the year… and according to Yahoo! Finance:
Bitcoin sales at Overstock (OSTK.O), which started accepting this type of currency as payment for items on its website in January this year, have exceeded $2 million so far, or about one-quarter of 1 percent of total sales.
Byrne expects bitcoin sales of $6 million to $8 million in 2014, most of it from new customers.
“I think the world expects us to make 75-80 cents per share this year. And 4 cents of that would be attributable to bitcoin,” Byrne said to Reuters last Friday.
So far, total bitcoin sales have totaled $15,000 per day, or $300,0000 per month. By the end of the year, Byrne expects Overstock to do $1 million in bitcoin sales per month. ~via Yahoo! Finance
Over 50k online stores are accepting Cryptos. And now over a Million sites can accept BTC / LTC / and DOGE with the latest announcement from GoCoin CEO Steve Beauregard
Pleased to announce @GoCoin + @PayPal together bringing #bitcoin #litecoin #dogecoin payments to PayPal merchants https://t.co/SUjwLS6fji
— Steve Beauregard (@GoCoinCEO) September 23, 2014
If that isn’t enough to pique your interest… Let’s take a quick look at how Cryptos and companies are making headlines across the web!
Man Sells Home for 100,000,000 DOGE!
Thompson, a user of Bitcoins since 2011, started buying and selling Dogecoins two days after they were made available online. But the early adopter didn’t think of selling his vacation home for cryptocurrency until his property got no offers after several months on the market. His three-bedroom, two-bath home is one of 2,300 properties on sale in Sawyer County, in the state’s northern woods.
To attract potential buyers, he decided to accept Dogecoins as a payment form. He sees potential in it. ~via CNN.com
Lamborghini of Newport Beach Sells Tesla Model S for Bitcoin
Bitcoin, a fully encrypted and fully digital currency, has been used by a recent client of ours to pay for a Tesla Model S Performance we had in our inventory. That’s right, an electronic currency was used to purchase a fully electric vehicle. ~via Lamborghini Newport Beach
I Bought Gourmet Waffles With Dogecoin!
I bought Russ and I gourmet waffles at a local brewery with Dogecoin (Not me pictured… but he was the first in Bellingham to buy w/ DOGE). It’s easy to see that brick and mortar stores can also benefit from a POS system that accepts cryptos. If the masses are asking for it, what’s the hold up? I may be called a tech neckbeard (tech hipster) for saying this.. but this is bleeding edge tech. DO IT. Whenever I’m on the fence I like to do the old Benjamin Franklin Pros/Cons to help.
So you’re probably asking yourself how do I get started? I suggest using GoCoin (and yes that’s my affiliate link, the first one I’ve published in the last 16yrs… because I truly BELIEVE in this)! The main reason I think GoCoin is the route to take is simple. They already have plugins built for Magento, WooCommerce, osCommerce, Ubercart, Zencart and several others.
So there you have it folks, something newsworthy, easy to implement, puts you in front of new customers, and did I mention this is bleeding edge technology? You should be the first kid on your block doing this. Lead the way! I had Russ and Liz scour the web for some of the best business directories that you can submit your company to once you’re accepting Cryptos. You’ll have to create accounts and submit your business info in most cases. Some of the sites also offer premium listings, but you can stick to the free listings for now and upgrade after you’ve checked your Google Analytics to see how many referrers and conversions the site is sending you. Check ’em out!
Bitcoin Directories:
Litecoin Directories:
Dogecoin Directories
As always… if you have any questions or comments, please leave them below and one of us will get back with you ASAP!