If both products are equal in benefits to user and have same price, which product offering will prospect choose?

Of course, prospect will choose Product #2 because of "exclusivity" of bonus. That exclusivity is a differentiator.

A differentiator could be a discount on a service that no one else in your niche offers. A differentiator could simply be a promise to respond to customer inquiries within 24 hours. The trait that defines a truly effective differentiator is uniqueness.

A differentiator could even be something as simple as packaging of sales process of a product or service itself. The packaging of a product includes graphics, format of delivery, appearance of web presence, etc.

With regards to graphics it is important to understand that people respond positively to visually pleasing graphics regardless of whether end product of offering is actually affected by those graphics. Due to average person's reluctance to buy online, better things look, better prospect feels about moving forward with a purchase.

In online world, prospect decides to purchase a product or service that is being marketed to them somewhat "virtually"...it is intangible to them until they buy. In this instance, a differentiator could be something as simple as slick graphic or choice of product format-pdf, exe, audio, RAM, MP3, etc.

Before you can actually identify a truly effective differentiator for product offering, a good amount of competitive intelligence needs to be done within appropriate vertical niche market. Begin by reviewing all products and services that could be perceived as competitors in that niche market and define differentiator from there.

Whatever type of differentiator is chosen, it's vital to make certain prospect clearly can understand value of it by itemizing benefits it brings to them.

This is often overlooked and equates to unrealized sales.

Author, "9 Deadly Mistakes To Avoid When Starting An Online Business" Publisher, "Starting Smart!" e-zine

Starting an online business

Yet another way to gain testimonials and thus credibility, is to approach well known experts within product niche and ask for their impression of product being sold with caveat that, if expert was in agreement that product was quality, he/she would send you a testimonial. Experts won't endorse products if they aren't quality because they've spent far too long establishing themselves online and unwarranted testimonials for sub par products damage their credibility.

Ideally, newcomer and intermediate Internet marketer will get "unsolicited" testimonials, but tactics listed before are simply ways to add to credibility. The fact that some testimonials may be obtained through bartering, doesn't deter from testimonial's credence. If product is truly quality, how testimonial was obtained is irrelevant to new prospects because to them, testimonials' origin is unknown.

Another effective way to establish online credibility is to publish articles to various websites. The same principle holds true here as with "expert testimonial" scenario. If an Internet marketer gets his/her articles published in newsletters that have sizable subscriber bases, that marketer's credibility is heightened. Many e-zine owners that have large subscriber bases will not publish sub-par articles, because doing so would damage credibility of publication. While getting articles published in other popular e-zines doesn't deliver specific benefits to prospects about product being sold, it will add to general online credibility of seller.

Whether newbie or intermediate Internet marketer use testimonials or article publication to establish online credibility, true measure is of credibility is in product itself. Before sale credibility is established by seller through overall USP and through testimonials. After sale is made, online credibility is defined by customer. The question at this point is: "Did product live up to sales message?" If so, online credibility with regards to customer-to-seller "one to one" relationship has been successfully established.

Author, "9 Deadly Mistakes To Avoid When Starting An Online Business" Publisher, "Starting Smart!" e-zine

Starting an online business