HugeNerd - 6:02 pm on Jan 29, 2009 (gmt 0)

Ok, so please go easy on me here as I am worthless when it comes to programming but feel I have a pretty keen business sense...

To build off of henry0's suggestion, why not examine the whois data and find build dates for these template sites. Contact any site which has been up for 6-9 months, where they've had enough time to utilize their template, see its effects on business, and find out whether or not they are deriving any value from their $300 investment.

The customers will weed themselves out. Anyone who is happy with their current site is either dull or has low expectations/needs. Either way, you can forget them and move on. Any person who hesitates or complains about their current site is a sale waiting to happen....

Those with complaints will tell you exactly where your oportunities lie. They'll be primed for a "value-added" sales approach -- they clearly know what they got for their first $300 and that it isn't enough. That's where you swoop in and tell them that for $5,000 they don't get a website, they get you, a real live person who answers phones and emails, does consults, customization, SEO, true design work...all of the things their template site lacks.

In short, why fight the cookie-cutters when they're doing you a favor and segmenting the market?