Buck Anderson posted on August 02, 2010 17:07 :: 1557 Views
A website that fails is one that fails to attract and convert enough targeted visitors into paying customers.
The Top Six Reasons Why Websites Fail:
- You Don't Capture Names and Email Addresses - Approx. 95-98% of your visitors will NOT buy your product/service on the 1st visit.
What happens to the 95 to 98% of visitors who's contact info you don't collect? If you're looking to sell ANYTHING online, you MUST be collecting name and emails Combining this with response booster: the free offer, and you've got a system for taking visitors who are “MAYBE” and turning them into "YES".
- You're Selling a Product That Nobody Wants - People tend to think they're the customer, they get excited about it, but they never think of the target market.
- Your Website Doesn't Have a Clear Cut Objective and Isn't Designed Correctly - Most direct response websites have so many mistakes in the way they're setup.
Fix the leaks in your website, then start adding more traffic.
- Your Website Doesn't Stand Out - Load up your website. Load up your competition's website. What instantly grabs your attention on their website? Is there anything you can do to create a similar effect?
Make your website stand out... this is vital especially in the first fold (first page).
- You're Lacking Traffic - There are many traffic articles on this site and I am not going to go into detail on here.... do a press release, Google Adwords, overture, jv's, etc.
- Your copy isn't formatted effectively to sell - It's one thing to have a great sales letter, but its another thing to have people actually read it. Fact is people online don't read. They scan. So if your website copy isn't formatted correctly, you could be loosing out on potential customers.
Understanding How a Web Visitor Thinks
Jakob Nielson author of: 50 websites deconstructed said: "People don't read online, they scan”
People read webpages very differently than they do printed pages 79% of the people tested skimmed the pages quickly, while only 16% read every word. This is why its vital to make sure your copy is formatted correctly to capture the most eyeballs.
It’s estimated you have approx 20-30 seconds to capture someones interest online.
The Internet is different than other media... people come online, they want information fast. You either capture someones attention immediately or your might risk loosing them forever. - This is why capturing visitors name and email is critical.
The single most important piece of real estate on your website is... With online, 75% of your success will come from people reading the entry point. With print, since people can jump all over the page(s), and often do, the entry point is less critical. -- So therefore the first fold is the most critical part of your website.
The most important part of your copy is the headline...why? Because it’s the easiest thing to see.
The 2nd most important part of your copy is the P.S. why? Because next to the headline its the easiest thing to scroll down to.
People never believe anything at 1st - it’s hard to believe what’s true and what’s not. We need to create some believability. What we have to offer is important and it ties into the needs, wants, goals and desires of the person reading.
People never do anything at 1st - we need a call to action. Get them to do something.
“Form follows function" your site design, and page design should always be secondary to the purpose of the website and in particular each page.
Make it easy for someone to buy! As recent research by Gartner and Jupiter Media Metrix suggests, convenience, usability and marketing clarity are even more important than price for online shoppers.
Successful Direct Response Web design means having a tactical rationale for the placement of every graphic, every image and every word. And that means knowing your customers, anticipating their needs, and answering their questions before they're even asked.
K.I.S.S - You'll lose readers if your sales page is cluttered or hard to follow. Use a strong headline, graphics that lead the eyes, and "helpers" such as subheadings to help readers see, grasp, and understand your message. Make your sales page easy on the eyes. An ad with a single central focus and a smooth sequence improves results. Don't confuse and overwhelm members by promoting different products or making too many selling points.
The Point to All This:
Just remember what Darwin said;
"It is not the strongest or the bravest that survive. It is those that are most adaptable to change."
If you spend everyday hoping that your Google page rank improves, or somebody will backlink to your site, or your unique visitor count will finally improve, it is time to evaluate where you are at, what you want to accomplish, and above all change what you are currently doing.
Buck Anderson is the President and CEO of Jive Media Group LLC. His expertise in web development and Internet Marketing began in 1997 as senior web developer for a muiti-million dollar company in Central Minnesota. He is an accomplished trainer and consultant for the popular, open source content management systems, DotNetNuke and Magento eCommerce. Buck is recognized throughout the industry as DNN Professor. He is also a respected XMod MVP accomplished in landing pages, forms and database designs.
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