Richard van Hooijdonk

Create a website that inspires and 'sticks'

For years, website conversion has been stuck at 3%. This means 97% of all visitors does not buy, does not download or does not sign up.

Despite all of our knowledge and techniques, we're still not able to improve this figure. Visitors are quick to leave: online, we have five to ten seconds at most to inspire a visitor. If we don't, he's gone. This 'inspiration' could be anything ranging from a personal video, interactivity or games to surprising content based on behavioral targeting or profile information.

After 'inspiration' (marketer seduces client to stay) follow 'connection' (marketer poses a question), 'dialogue' (marketer and consumer talk) and 'conversion' (consumer buys from marketer). We have to facilitate each of these phases online to improve the results from our web presence. Online visitors have to be placed in an environment and atmosphere that puts them at ease and gently pushes them toward wanting to do what we want them to do: I call this the 'pre-experience'. It allows visitors to almost experience online what they'll experience when they've bought our product or service, stimulating conversion. If a website visitor can almost feel or experience our product or service online as if it were the real thing, our website results will be significantly higher than the 'digital brochures' most companies call their websites.

So pay attention to your 'pre-experience' and think about what kind of experience could raise conversion. Just think of what you'd do when you're talking with a client: you shake your client or prospect's hand, you use your charm and playfully find out his desires or needs. That's how you get that final signature beneath the contract. Translating these interactions to an online environment, we're looking at video Q&A, personal
avatars and behavioral targeting. There are more examples. For instance, think of the excitement and energy of people in a rollercoaster ride, on a beautiful summer's day. Could you grab that feeling, grab that energy, personalize it and unleash it in an online environment? Yes, yes you can! Just look at Nike, Adidas or Meez, who let you create your own online avatar, bringing the shopping experience to your computer monitor.

Remaking' your current website can be very interesting, if coupled with concrete targets. Websites are more and more becoming commercially important tools and we've got to prove that. It's not just sales goals though. We may be looking for profiles (containing client information), e-mail addresses, research data, or
leads and prospects. Those other data are valuable too. Putting those in our business case, it'll pave the road toward getting the budgets you need for serious Webpresence 2.0.

Parcel International: “UPS and FedEx need to change their thinking”

“UPS and FedEx need to change the way they think”. Courier comparison website Parcel International is talking big, but not just to get noticed. They wish to expose the lack of transparency among courier services to the world. Parcel International offers comprehensive comparisons of all the major courier services, such as UPS and TNT. Users can instantly find out which service handles their specific deliveries the fastest and the cheapest.

 

Customers of Parcel International also save money because they don't have to sign up to each particular courier company. Instead, they sign up to Parcel International, who then lets its users choose between companies like TNT, DHL and FedEx to handle their delivery.

Short URLs more popular as search engine results

The longer a search result's URL is, the less likely it is visitors will follow the link. Research agency Marketingsherpa studied the connection between URL length in Google search results and click-through behavior. Users who were confronted with long URLs were 2.5 times as likely to click the next search result instead, compared to users confronted with short URLs in their search results.

 

Marketingsherpa suggests users try to read and understand the search result URL. Length of the sentence plays a big role in reading speed: a shorter URL is much easier to read and thus often preferable. Also, a long URL visually splits the page in two parts. Users tend to look at the lower part of the page, the part below the long URL.

 

Although URL length would seem insignificant, the study advises organisations to keep it in mind nonetheless when designing their websites.

Surfing The Live Web

Companies are quickly making their online presence more and more transparent. In the past, companies stuck to one way communications: their websites were nothing little more than glorified company brochures, offering visitors no interaction whatsoever. Today, all that has changed. Weblog expert Steve Rubel calls it The Live Web: RSS feeds keep consumers updated on the latest business news, companies open up on public weblogs and so on. No longer do companies wait for the consumer to come to them, instead they'll take it upon themselves to reach potential buyers.

 

In AdAge Digital, part of online magazine AdAge, Rubel shares his thoughts on how to decentralize a company's online presence. To achieve this, he outlines three possible strategies.

 

The first strategy for online decentralization is to drop the idea of a having a single website representing the company online. Social websites such as Facebook or MySpace let companies' brands infiltrate the consumer's online world. They can experience brands online in a way that much better suits the modern internet.

 

The second strategy is to connect people. Taking the first strategy a step further, brands can actually use the internet as a meeting point for (potential) clients. Again, social networking sites like Hyves could be used here.

 

The third and final strategy is to offer portable content. For instance, content from the company website can be offered in form of RSS feeds to mobile telephones. Obviously, this would require a critical analysis of the current website: not every company has a website that is already suitable for conversion to portable content.

Internet improves daily activities

The role of internet in consumers' daily lives keeps on increasing. Postbank's study 'Online or offline?' confirms this as it shows that internet is being used by people of all ages these days. Most consumers are convinced that internet has caused many improvements in their daily lives. For instance, 66% considers online banking a significant improvement. Meanwhile, 57% finds that internet offers a wider range of information. Other praiseworthy online elements are sending e-mails, planning routes and buying and selling second hand products. Young people especially consider internet the primary source for finding information.

When it comes to personal contact and interaction, internet does have some catching up to do. Birthday cards are still sent by mail mostly, because a card by mail has a larger impact than a digital birthday card. Also, only 16% of respondents says to be willing to meet people through dating sites. Although travelling arrangements are done online a lot, consumers still prefer personal appointments. Shopping online or in real life is considered practically equal.

The power of mapvertising

As internet popularity increases, marketers' interest in mapvertising is increasing as well. Mapvertising entails the bringing together of digital carto graphy and advertising. It's simply a result of the fact that 85% of all internet surfers use online maps, in particular Google Earth and Google Maps.

The variety in the different appearances of mapvertising is one of the reasons for its success. Google Earth and Google Maps for instance offer companies to put small icons and beacons on the maps and satellite images. Clicking the icons shows information and usually a hyperlink to the company website. Another totally different appearance of mapvertising is the printable coupon for companies close to the address the surfer is focusing on.

Surfing The Live Web

Companies are quickly making their online presence more and more transparent. In the past, companies stuck to one way communications: their websites were nothing little more than glorified company brochures, offering visitors no interaction whatsoever. Today, all that has changed. Weblog expert Steve Rubel calls it The Live Web: RSS feeds keep consumers updated on the latest business news, companies open up on public weblogs and so on. No longer do companies wait for the consumer to come to them, instead they'll take it upon themselves to reach potential buyers.

In AdAge Digital, part of online magazine AdAge, Rubel shares his thoughts on how to decentralize a company's online presence. To achieve this, he outlines three possible strategies. The first strategy for online decentralization is to drop the idea of a having a single website representing the company online. Social websites such as Facebook or MySpace let companies' brands infiltrate the consumer's online world. They can experience brands online in a way that much better suits the modern internet.

The second strategy is to connect people. Taking the first strategy a step further, brands can actually use the internet as a meeting point for (potential) clients. Again, social networking sites like Hyves could be used here. The third and final strategy is to offer portable content. For instance, content from the company website can be offered in form of RSS feeds to mobile telephones. Obviously, this would require a critical analysis of the current website: not every company has a website that is already suitable for conversion to portable content.