I took my four kids to see the movie Alpha and Omega at the theater in my town this past Saturday.
The movie just came out the day before, so I figured I’d better get there early for the 3:45 PM show to beat the crowds and get good seats.
We ended up being the first and last people for the showing at the nearly 40-year-old, run-down Berkeley Cinema.
It was the first time I’d been there to see a movie. I’ve always driven 10 or so miles out of the way to see movies in a modern multiplex.
During the movie, I was thinking about the theater and wondering how the owner was just letting it go extinct. This reminded me of so many affiliate sites – they start up and emulate tons of other sites and nobody visits them.
Why? They don’t give people a reason to go there. There’s nothing different or special. It’s a crappy experience that doesn’t inspire repeat visits.
There is a similar movie theater, the Dunellen Cinema Café, a few towns away from me, that has re-invented itself as New Jersey’s Only Cinema Café. They removed every other row to make space for tables, and they serve food to the theater seats.
There is a decent bar menu and specials like a large cheese pizza and a pitcher of soda or beer for $13.75. They’re doing something that nobody else in the area is doing, and establishing themselves as a destination.
How about your sites? Why should people bother visiting, and more importantly, why should they go back a second time?
Make your site(s) different and better. Innovate. Differentiate.
But don’t stop there – you need to get the word out, too.
As P.T. Barnum once said, “Without promotion something terrible happens… Nothing!”