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Marketer. Designer. Entrepreneur.
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Making it Easier on “Joe Visitor”

November 13th, 2007

A fast loading page that is quick and easy to navigate works wonders when it comes to conversion rate and visitor engagement in the site. About a month ago we were in the preliminary stages of redesigning a website for the company spend about 10 hours a week with, Hawkeye Technology Inc,. They came up with the design but needed help writing sales copy, creating some images, and improving the overall layout and usability of the site. They sell two pieces of software, this is the landing page one. What are the first things you notice when you see this screen shot?

The five things I noticed were:

1) No Headline
2) 10 Options Down The Side
3) 8 Options Across the Top
4) Drab Colors
5) No Call to Action

So, I looked through the site and studied the content, looking for ways to simplify their page. The first thing I noticed was that they had a “pricing” and a “purchase” page, the prices were listed on the purchase page but you could place an order from the pricing page. Next, I found that three of the pages were really features of the program and could be easily included in the features page.

I realized that if “Joe Visitor” wanted to check out some features, read a few reviews, and download a demo or make a purchase he would have to click on as many as 10-12 links! In the end we were able to break it down to 6 total pages for each software.

1) Main Landing Page
2) Features
3) Reviews
4) Support
5) Demo
6) Order

Here is a screenshot of the new layout (which I will discuss in a bit when that is all finalized) with the new, condensed navigational links area.

Now, if Joe wants to see some features, read some reviews, and then download a demo it takes three clicks. Joe is happy, we are happy…life is good.

MEC LABS – Continuity and Congruence

October 24th, 2007

MarketingExpriments.com had another one of their free teleseminar’s today on two subjects as a follow up from their “site flow disruption” episode.  Continuity and Congruence are aspects that, the more I think about it, are missing from many of the pages I have designed.  For the most part it exists because naturally our minds tend to organize things in a continuous line, but rarely have I stepped back and thought about how the rest of a page ties into the value proposition from my CUSTOMERS perspective.

I recently did a google search for “road bike derailleurs” and clicked on an Adwords ad with the title “Buy Top Bike Derailleurs.”  The landing page showed helmets and headlamps; I clicked “back” and tried the next link.  Why?  Because the link said one thing and the landing page said another.

I later searched for a free web design course and found this site mikeoconnor.biz after clicking on an Adwords ad.  Here is the screenshot:

MikeOConnor

 The link that I clicked on said “free website income.”  Instantly, this extreme example of lack of continuity and congruence illustrated the effects of not following these principles.  So, I clicked on a link that said, “free website income – get a free website and make money full or part time” the header of the page I land on reads “sports and recreation,” the header of the first paragraph is simply the web address which has a very stock paragraph on making money, then a banner ad, and then three links to different ebooks about SEO and online marketing.

I am getting four completely different messages; get a free website, I like sports, leave my site via this banner ad, look at these ebooks on making money.  How effective is this site?  I hope that Mike is not paying a high CPC for his Google ads because I anyone that came to this site would get instantly lost and probably click “back” and try the next site.

DESIGN PROJECT – Backstrom Events

October 5th, 2007

Backstrom Events is based in Colorado Spring, CO and needed an update to their current “homemade” website as they looked to expand their services into Utah. Let’s first take a look at their old site.

Backstrom Events Before

As you can see, the page had a basic left-column layout with the logo in the top right, Denielle’s (the owner’s) picture in the top left and lots of white space and standard text. Backed by two talented designers and planners, they needed a look that matched their skill and image.

Working with Laurel Farrer, we created a design that we converted to HTML, tweaked to increase the usability of the site(we deleted two pages they were thinking of and combined them with other pages to simplify and streamline the visitors experience), and created a second site with a different header image to differentiate between the Utah and Colorado services offered and their prices. Heres what we came up with:

Backstrom Events After

They chose the color scheme and tag line and I guided them through to rest to make sure their site was usable, simple to navigate, and tried to quickly make the visitor aware of and excited about the services they offered. See the finished site at www.backstromevents.com.

One Thing Only Please

September 30th, 2007

I have recently been to a number of web sites that have been elaborately designed and look very sharp. However, I have no idea where to go once I get there. “Is this what I am looking for?” I ask myself. Are they selling something? Are they a service?

A good rule of thumb I have found to work by is to create each web page with one purpose. If it is a the main landing page, what do I want visitors to know and then where do I want them to go? Once that is determined, I have found that page appearance pales in comparison to the contents. Once I know the purpose of a page, the contents come much more naturally.

Knowing the purpose of a page comes as part of a web of an entire site. Each page should be focused on getting the visitor to the same spot, an order page (or equivalent), armed with the information that will get them excited to make a purchase. This purpose is found by knowing your target market and knowing how they think, what they need, how they feel, etc.
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