Show of hands: How many people noticed the typo in the title?  My guess is that those who did were ready to jump all over my mistake.  It was done intentionally to help prove my point: Visitors notice typos. (For those who are still confused: loose = free or released from fastening or attachment; lose = to come to be without.)

These days, most people are less skeptical about the internet.  We think little of viewing bank statements, paying utility…

...continue to read "Credibility: Yours to Loose"

I have to admit, I love to read our blog.  I love the insights my colleagues routinely bring to the table–and the fact that, like world-class athletes, they make it look so easy!  But sometimes, when I try to put all the pieces together, I find my head in a whirl of information, overwhelmed by the complexities of internet marketing and website optimization…and that’s when I have to get back to basics.  I remind myself to Keep…

...continue to read "A Little K.I.S.S. Just in Time for Valentine’s Day"

Recently, I moved to Boston and began the search for the perfect gym.  I got recommendations from friends, did some research online, and even visited a few in the area to discuss membership options.  But, my instincts told me that if I could just wait one more week, some amazing deal would come along.

Last week that deal appeared in my inbox from Groupon; $24 for 24 day passes, a $480 value, saving me 95%! I couldn’t have been…

...continue to read "Timed Sale Websites & The X Factor of Conversion"

Henry Ford perfected the assembly line concept in the automobile industry many years ago, and it has been utilized successfully in many industries since. Before Ford implemented the highly successful assembly line, instead of focusing on what each skilled worker specialized in and passing the car down the line to the next worker, the skilled workers crafted cars one at a time together as a team. Ford’s introduction of the assembly line resulted in the development of affordable cars (decreased…

...continue to read "Who’s Working Your Website Assembly Line?"

You probably won’t like the website I’m about to show you.

In fact, you may not like the product, either, simply because you’re probably not part of their targeted audience.  So make up your mind now to look past that in order to see the marketing decisions behind both the product and the site.

Let’s start by imagining that you’ve just been challenged to enter the fitness category. Not to sell some machine or piece of equipment, but to sell…

...continue to read "On Target Copywriting and the next “Buns of Steel”"

A student at the University of British Columbia Web Analytics course reached out to us via Twitter to ask some questions about creating personas, specifically Persuasion Architecture® Personas and the information is important enough that we thought we’d share our response:

“Are you saying that we shouldn’t bother with creating multiple personas with granular details but rather focus on creating only a few (4 if we use the logical-emotional, quick-deliberate quadrant)? But if we add the stages of the buying cycle in…

...continue to read "Dear Confused By Personas"

The ecommerce shopping cart is a great place to run tests, as simple changes (layout, copy, color, etc.) often yield fantastic results.  There are unanswered questions in the minds of our customers that we think are obviously answered on the page, but they’re not.  If you’re not sure about what those unanswered questions are, you can back up a few steps and use personas or user testing to uncover them.

Here are 5 key, unanswered questions (beyond shipping costs) of the shopping…

...continue to read "The Shopping Cart: How to Answer the 5 Unanswered Customer Questions"

1. What is the best way to generate sales online? A Forbes study shows that 48% of marketers said that search engine optimization (SEO) was the best method for generating conversions online. It’s always easier to start when visitors have some level of intent.

2. Search drives more sales, but shoppers are thinking longer before buying.

3. Does Google Analytics overstate the value of search? Econsultancy research shows that it might.  Make sure to at least set your cookies for 30 days.

4.…

...continue to read "TheGrok’s Not-To-Miss Links for the Week 6/12/09"

Long and short are linear terms (they refer to length, right?).  So they work fine to categorize or describe copy found in a sales letters or print advertisements.

But (most) websites aren’t linear because hyperlinks break linearity (aka subvert hierarchy).

People don’t read (most) Websites one full page at a time in a numbered order; they read/scan/move from one link that interests them to the next link that interests them, often entering or starting on something other than page #1 (what bad web…

...continue to read "How to Think About Long vs. Short Copy"

I was reviewing a usability test of a B2B site today, and I heard two very different reactions to the same video (I’ll paraphrase):

#1: That video was a waste of time.  They could’ve conveyed the same information in way less time.  My questions aren’t answered. #2: That video was awesome!  I feel much more educated about their service now, and it was very professional-looking.

Scary, right?  The video was professionally shot, edited, and produced.  It…

...continue to read "B2B Warning: One Persuasive Video May Not Be Enough"