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By autoresponder
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How to Get People to Surf into
Your Site and Respond
A successful Web site is an extremely
effective sales tool since it has the ability to
gain the attention of a captive audience and
become quite profitable for some who follow some
basic rules. Like all direct response marketing
processes, it must first hook a reader's
attention and then move them to take some action.
However, the mechanics of that very first page
are often ignored. And such Web sites, although
some of which get a large number of hits, never
seem to produce the anticipated level of response
let alone deeper traffic.
This article does not focus on traffic-building
or on the programming elements of a good first
page (such as HTML, meta-tags, frames, graphics,
ad nauseum), but on its content, copy, looks, and
consistency that will captivate the attention of
today's leery and undiscerning audience. It is to
move them to surf further into the site and
ultimately to the sale -- and it all starts with
the first page.
With just a few changes, you can turn your Web
site into a more compelling and effective sales
tool. Remember that, every single day, your
customers are bombarded with a continuous flow of
information and marketing messages, and that
competition for their attention is exceedingly
fierce. A Web site that captures their attention
and stays active in your customer's mind will not
only generate sales but also have that customer
visit deeper into your site (let alone visit your
site again and again).
Here are some basic rules to follow when
designing a front page:
1. FOCUS ON YOUR NICHE AND TARGET YOUR
AUDIENCE
Target your market! As the adage goes,
"You can not be everything to
everyone." You can, however, position your
site effectively to meet the needs of a specific
group. It's a paradox but you will indeed get
more with less. This means understanding who your
customers/visitors are and what motivates their
buying decisions. Therefore, do your homework.
Know your customer. Appeal to their specific
needs and psyche. Focus like a laser on your
niche and, consequently, your site will burn into
their minds.
Web sites centered on a very narrow theme or idea
will create visitors of greater interest, and
especially leads that are much more pre-qualified
and apt to buy. Look at it this way: When you
narrow down your message and focus on a niche,
visitors will be 50% sold the minute they hit
your site's first page. Then, it is up to your
content (copy, offer, and call-to-action) to take
them through the remaining 50%.
Niche marketing on the Web is particularly
important since people do not have the time to
sift through an entire site -- let alone a search
engine or even the Internet -- to find exactly
that for which they are looking. If your site is
unique, highly specialized, and focused however,
people will be inclined to surf deeper into
your site once they hit the first page.
When focusing on a niche, the content of your
site's first page will be far more credible than
the mere see-through puffery of one's own
blatant promotional message. Nevertheless, if you
cater to a particular audience, it will then be
easier for your first page to lead visitors to a
successful outcome.
2. HAVE AN OBJECTIVE IN MIND AND BE SIMPLE
Answer this skill-testing question:
"What exactly do you want your visitors to
do?" Simple, isn't it? But it doesn't seem
that way with the many sites I've visited. The KISS
principle (that is keep it simple and straightforward)
is immensely important on the 'Net. Every
effective Web site starts with smart planning and
it must have a clear objective that will lead to
a specific action or outcome. If your site is not
meant to, say, sell a product, gain a customer,
or obtain an inquiry for more information, then
what exactly must it do? Work around the answer
as specifically as possible.
Don't be vague and be specific. Is your Web site
meant to be like a résumé or billboard that
only advertises the fact that you are "open
for business"? It shouldn't, unless you are
intimately involved with that specific medium
(i.e., you are a Web designer or host, or in
other words your site is the product in
itself). If not, is it to generate qualified
leads? Is it to sell a particular product? Are
you trying to persuade your visitors to switch
from another company to you? Do you want them to
call you on the phone for more information? Are
you trying to have them subscribe to some
membership program? You get the picture.
The mind hates confusion. If you try to
get your visitors to do too many things,
especially on the front page, they will do
nothing. However, if you want to offer a visitor
a variety of different options, then try to focus
on one alone and create a secondary site (or
more) that are each respective to a particular
action, and then link them together at the
appropriate locations for flow. In essence, keep
your message focused. Do not try to
communicate too much -- you will overwhelm the
reader. Use one major theme and no more than two
to three basic messages.
3. COMMUNICATE AS CLEARLY AND CONCISELY AS
POSSIBLE
When you are in the process of buying a book,
for instance, the one thing that has attracted
you is the cover (if you're not aware of the
author beforehand, and even then the cover plays
a key role). If the proverb "Don't judge
books by their covers" exists, it is because
we, as humans, have the natural inclination to
do so. Newspapers capitalize on that intrinsic
human behavior, which is why front-page headlines
and news articles are always carefully selected.
Therefore, the front page of your Web site is
"the cover of your book," so to speak.
It should entice readers to surf further into the
site and not lead them to take action
right then and there (unless your site is a
single page). Keep your copy short and to the
point, allowing the reader to quickly understand
what's in it for them. Use bold,
attention-grabbing headlines and subheadlines
(even surheadlines) to emphasize the major theme
and the core benefit that your site offers.
In fact, list the benefits. Why should a visitor
surf your site? What's in it for him/her? In
other words, focus on communicating to the
visitor the reasons why they should browse
further. A great technique for doing so is to use
a bulleted list of benefits (such as when it
follows the words "With this site, you
get," "in this site, you will
find," or "here are the reasons why you
should browse this site").
As I wrote in another article, (http://members.home.net/success-doctor/article17.htm), bulleted benefit lists
not only give a visual break for the reader but
are also appealing and effective since they are
short, to-the-point, and clustered for greater
impact. Remember that customers buy benefits and
not products. Therefore, your first page should
focus on the benefits of your site and not its
features.
Present a problem and emphasize it. Focus on an
existing gap (the gap between a problem and its
solution). And then show what your site brings to
the table by telling your visitors how, by
surfing deeper, they will be able to fill that
gap. In other words, the first page must confirm
that there is a problem and how exactly you can
solve it by surfing deeper.
4. LIMIT THE BACKGROUND INFORMATION, GRAPHICS,
AND PLUG-INS
Unlike the TV or radio, computers are still
not considered as household items (not yet,
anyway). While they are well on their way, the
computer as well as the Internet are still in
their infancy. Earlier, less capable browsers as
well as slower modems are still the norm. If your
site includes too much background, Javascript,
frames, plug-ins, and dazzling graphics in an
effort to impress, it will be counterproductive.
Many potential sales are lost due to a
slow-loading, unbrowsable Web site.
Your site should download fast. Research by an
on-hold phone message marketing company found
that people start hanging up when put on hold for
more than 30 seconds. The Internet is no
different. If they have to wait for more than 30
seconds for your page to load, visitors will
leave. In short, if they have to wait, they
won't.
Often, people say that our society has entered
the "information revolution." Not so.
It's the "access to information"
revolution. The ability to retrieve information
in nanosecond speed is the underlying drive
behind the Internet. For instance, that same
ability has caused entire layers of middle
managers to be wiped out. Therefore, anything
that slows it down, especially when compared to
other, quicker-loading competitor sites, will
cost you in lost sales.
Aside from load-time, you only have a few seconds
to attract your visitors before they leave. As
such, you must communicate and distill your
knowledge right down to the really important.
Don't overwhelm them with so much information or
glitz that they miss your central message. While
your site may have entertainment value, if they
do not take action you are still losing.
5. PROJECT A CONSISTENT, PROFESSIONAL IMAGE
They say that "you never get a second
chance to make a good first impression."
First impressions are therefore important to the
degree to which visitors are positively impacted
by the first or index page. It is where the
selling process begins. Consistent color,
well-balanced information, appealing and
quick-loading graphics, and, most important, the
right message targeted to the proper audience are
the most important elements of a
professional-looking, repeatedly revisited Web
site.
In fact, the Web site's front page message is the
highest in priority. Don't let careless mistakes
weaken the impact of your presentation, and
always proofread -- and have others proofread --
your copy for typographical and grammatical
errors. As far as the particular image you wish
your site to project, first determine the
objective. Are you trying to convey that you are
informed, serious, credible, fun, helpful, or
advanced technologically? The tone of your
message can help put visitors in a particular
frame of mind and appeal specifically to a
targeted audience.
A final caveat, though. The first page should not
be the only one that follows the above
rules. Applying these pointers to an entire site
should be carefully considered. Needless to say,
however, that once they are sold on your site, or
in other words if you are able to make them pass
through that all-important first page hurdle,
then persuading them to take action later on
should be a cinch.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Michel Fortin, Ph.D. is The Success Doctor,™
a business development consultant, speaker,
author, and copywriter. You can reach him at mailto:success-doctor@home.com or at (613)748-1624. If
you like the ideas expressed in this article,
then get a FREE copy of the complete book,
"The 10 Commandments of Power Positioning:
Magical Marketing Strategies for Creating an
Endless Stream of New, Repeat, and Referral
Business," by visiting http://members.home.net/success-doctor. Subscribe to his FREE
e-zine, "The Profit Pill." |
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