WEB DESIGN AND MARKETING SOLUTIONS FOR BUSINESS WEBSITES phần 5 ppsx

A selling path is an easily followed, short series of actions that leads people to initiate the sales process.Ideally, this should be three tangible steps: 1.Landing page: People will fi

Your company’s About section is going to be a high-traffic area People care about the tle details like corporate charity and quarterly earnings, and the power of well-designedinformation cannot be understated Take advantage of the medium and build a rich envi-ronment for your visitors Well-organized press release pages, detailed investor relations,and a premium contact form will go a long way in building the company’s name as a rep-utable contender

lit-7 PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Companies are not started with the goal of doing nothing Every business, from thesmallest mom-and-pop bookstore at the end of the street to the international goliaths likeFord, Microsoft, and IBM, start with an idea good enough to support a profitable opera-tion, and continue to work to develop new ideas that keep them in the black.

Some businesses, like niche auto part manufacturers, produce small, physical widgets withobscure part numbers that drive bigger machines Another company assembles thosesmall parts and sells the final, shiny product to the public The corporate office of the sec-ond company uses complex software applications developed by a third company to keeptheir office workers grounded to their computers between lunch breaks A fourth corpo-ration “makes” nothing, but consults about the expensive applications the corporate officeuses and produces complex workflow and productivity diagrams to justify their fees Afifth company—a legal firm—sells their intellectual prowess, and enjoys healthy profitssimply for being clever

At the end of the day, every business does something.

Up to this point, we have covered several very important aspects of a corporate website,from content and accessibility to navigation structures and the ever-important homepage.All of these, and all of the chapters following, serve to bolster the indispensable part ofthe website where the company expounds on what they actually do

The content and design of this section is vital It will be consumed by almost every visitor.For newbies, one of the first questions they ask when arriving on your site is, “OK, this is anice looking site, but what exactly does this company do?” By contrast, a long-termcustomer will think, “OK, been here before, but let’s go see what’s new in theproducts/services section.” It becomes a common destination, and must straddle severallayers of messaging to accommodate the audience range

This chapter covers best practices in both product and service descriptions Products areadmittedly more complex, and often involve photography, specifications, supporting doc-umentation, and more Services require eloquent content, but are more grounded in one-on-one contact to make a sale The chapter will explore the differences and thenuances of optimizing a site for either one

Do you do products or services?

Almost by definition, your business is going to offer services, products, or both.Distinguishing between the two is vitally important, just as the selling points for each need

to be unique Let’s discuss the finer points of distinction

Products

Products are tangible and usually physical things that are sold at a fixed rate Put this bookdown, look around, and you will see 100 objects manufactured, distributed, and sold by

For instance, a company called Old Skool Lites might manufacture replica lamps based offantique designs Its website would profile these different models and most likely contain

an online catalog describing each in detail, or at least a link to a PDF version of the log It is strictly a product-based company By contrast, another company called SpeedyApp develops and sells OEM software that powers onboard car computers Its websitewould contain fewer pictures with more of an emphasis on specifications and integrationcapabilities

cata-Any type of asset, whether it be physical like a lamp or intellectual like software, can beconstrued as an item for consumption There are three key traits for anything labeled aproduct:

1.It’s something the buyer can physically use—a lamp, a wheelbarrow, a softwareprogram, web hosting services, a chartered plane ticket to the Bahamas

2.It’s not unique Anyone can buy one If it involves custom planning, work, or cution, it falls into the service category, as we’ll explore shortly If it requires customplanning and then physical execution (like a mural painter), it is a hybrid

exe-3.The company making it usually refers to its patrons as customers, not clients

A product can be used once or 1,000 times, last 10 seconds or 100 years, be the size of acity block or as insubstantial as ones and zeros on a hard drive

Services

Services are anything that is customized for the buyer While certainly not required, they

are usually intellectual in nature In our lamp example, Old Skool Lites is going to actuallyproduce the lamp—it is a physical shop that cuts wood, shapes metal, conducts electricalwork, and packages the final product However, Old Skool Lites works with another com-pany called Distro Dudes that collects the store-ready merchandise from the lamp makerand distributes it across the country

Distro Dudes is a service-based company It doesn’t actually make anything; it works withoriginal manufacturers to ship products all over the country, designing custom distributionschedules and pricing scales on a per-customer basis

Most service-based businesses are fairly easy to spot—their pricing and final deliverable isalmost always tailored for the client and the project Here are some examples:

A legal firm always customizes its deliverable It may range from 2 hours fighting a

speeding ticket to a 4-year corporate legal battle costing millions of dollars No twoclients ever have the same service, and no two will ever pay the same amountbecause the work is tailored on a case-by-case basis and billed by the hour

A medical staffing company uses their industry expertise, people skills, and unique

list of contacts to get hospitals, outpatient centers, and other healthcare facilitiesstaffed with the best workers available Every client is treated individually, withtheir staffing holes being matched with specific skill sets of industry professionals

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An advertising agency uses a unique set of talents and industry knowledge to

pro-duce advertising campaigns for every client While the writing, graphic design, andart direction culminates in physical products—billboards, TV commercials, maga-zine ads—the client is always delivered a collection of creative work that is whollyunique

On a website, major service-based companies cannot sell their offerings through a ping cart As you can see with Rapid Power Management’s website in Figure 7-1, servicescan be described at length and reinforced with miles of testimonials, but until the com-pany offers a customized proposal and a contract is agreed to and signed, no moneymoves between bank accounts

shop-Figure 7-1 Rapid Power Management offers consulting services to companies looking to reduce

their power bills Its services are described at length, but cannot be purchased through its website

Products and services

Companies do not always produce just products or offer only services Many do both Toconclude our example, our lamp-maker Old Skool Lites produces antique replica lighting,but employs Distro Dudes, a service-based distribution company, to handle the logistics ofgetting their products into the marketplace One store that buys these lamps is Ted’sAntiques, an outlet that carries both authentic antique furniture as well as replica piecessuch as those made from Old Skool Lites Ted’s Antiques is a bit unique in the area,

Its website, like many other similar businesses, would have both a products and services

section These parallel sections might or might not be related Oracle, for instance, notonly offers enterprise-grade databases, but considerable, closely aligned consulting serv-ices to support client installations Another technology company, IBM, carries a line ofconsumer computer equipment, but also offers a completely unrelated line of consultingservices to corporations

Unless the two are completely entwined, each section needs to be handled independently

Many sites opt for a “products and services” section, which, more often than not, is a nomer For instance, consider an artist who blows custom glass sculptures He might have

mis-a few pieces mis-avmis-ailmis-able for purchmis-ase from his website, which might even be obtmis-ainmis-ablethrough a shopping cart system, but his primary business is creating exclusive installationsfor corporate campuses He is certainly not going to mix these up on the website under atab labeled Products and Services—they will be clearly segregated

One of the best ways to avoid confusion regarding products and services is to employaccurate and relevant naming of sections on the website We’ll get deeper into that ideafurther on in the chapter

Finding the section

Like other major sections, the Products and Services sections have to be readily accessiblefrom the main menu In fact, they should be readily accessible from anywhere it makessense If you’ve spent time talking about your company in the About section, link to thesepages for more information; if you have a corporate blog, link to these pages constantly;

on the homepage, linking the overview to the more detailed description is a no-brainer

Users should find their way to this content without thinking

The architecture of the section is dependent on how complex the products or services are

As a general rule, product pages are longer, and comprehensive product sections can bearchitecturally deep to ensure each widget, fondoodle, and hoodiggery is appropriatelyrepresented The design of the section’s structure is completely dependent on two things:

1.How many things the company sells

2.How much time the company wants to invest in the online version of its productcatalog

Many companies offer feature-rich shopping carts to support 500,000 objects; othersmight only sell three things but offer the reader nothing more than a downloadable PDForder form and an address for sending the check This functionality is dependent onseveral things, including the technical limitations of the staff, the established budget forthe project, and whether the traffic demands the investment

Services pages are usually less complex; more often than not, there is simply less to talkabout because few services can be sold without personal interaction between business andclient

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Section naming

Up to this point, we’ve been referring to these sections as Products or Services, because,

by definition, that’s what they are—you sell a product, a service, or both “Products” and

“services” are commonly accepted terms in the online world; when people click thosewords in the main menu, they generally know what they are getting themselves into.However, for some companies, the nomenclature is just too vague Unlike “home” or

“about,” which are entrenched as medium standards and have a common meaning, it’sbetter to offer readers a more descriptive section title when it comes to what the com-pany actually does

In our glassblower example, we discussed how the artist’s primary business was custominstallations, but he also sold a few pieces through his website This artist would probablynot want to use the terms “products” and “services” in the navigation Instead, it would

provide additional context if more relevant titles were chosen, like Sculptures for Sale and

Custom Installations In our other example, Ted’s Antiques might have a section on its site

called Furniture in Stock and another called Restoration Services Both succinctly

encapsu-late what the user will find if the button is clicked

Equally important is to avoid words that are different but equally ambiguous “Solutions”might be the worst offender; it smacks of fancy new-age business speak, but in fact means

even less than “products” or “services” because it could really be either one.

Designing the Products and Services pages

Websites have become the go-to medium for casual information gathering Google,Wikipedia, Technorati, and other massive information harvesters offer the world near-infinite information at near-instant speeds When people hear about a company, they type

in the URL Because of this, providing as much information about the business and itsofferings is a critical ingredient in successful websites and marketing in general—whencontent is available, people will consume it

Few sections benefit more from building content than the products or services Not onlydoes it inform the audience, which is very likely the customer base, but it presents an idealmarketing platform and selling opportunity If people are already on your site, why notpush them into action?

The Products and Services pages should be built with a selling path in mind A selling path

is an easily followed, short series of actions that leads people to initiate the sales process.Ideally, this should be three tangible steps:

1.Landing page: People will find the products or services landing page, be enamored

with all the wondrous things the company manufactures, sells, or consults about,and click on an item for deeper exploration

3.Acquisition: After readers consume everything about the product or service that

catches their eye, they will effortlessly find themselves on a page that (politely) asksthem to finish what they started, either by making a purchase or becoming a qual-ified lead by making contact with the company

In Chapter 4, we explored the concept of goal conversion The selling path is the secondhalf of this; it captures a user’s attention midway through the conversion process and acts

as the catalyst for achieving the goal (see Figure 7-2) Because of this, this three-step ing path should be nearly thoughtless for the user—they should find themselves movingdown the conversion funnel with about as much resistance as a greased bowling ballencounters rolling across ice

sell-Streamlining this process is not as easy as it sounds In fact, it requires careful design andcopywriting, explored in the next section

Figure 7-2 The selling path starts midway through the goal conversion.

Product page design

A company whose primary line of business is selling tangible products will find its catalog

of items falling into three fairly distinct categories:

1.Products that can be sold on the Web: Just about anything that can be shipped and

delivered cost-effectively can be sold via an online shopping cart, from fruitbaskets to furniture to cars These products do not need the help of a sales force

Customers can make a purchase online without interacting with the company

2.Products that could be sold via the Web but are not: Many corporate websites

describe products that could feasibly be sold online but are not because the pany chooses to distribute them in other ways Many food manufacturers do notsell their products online because they have exclusive distribution deals withgrocery stores and other retail outlets

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3.Products that cannot realistically be sold through a shopping cart: These products

simply can’t be delivered without a huge expense (such as a luxury fishing boat) orwithout intense customization (enterprise-grade software)

While they are still tangible things, the last two types of products have to be treated like

services because either the customer has to seek out the product beyond the Web, or thecustomer and vendor have to engage in a human interaction for the sale to be made Aswith services, a website can only go so far in marketing and selling these types of products,which is why this section will focus on the first category, or those that are sold over theInternet

When designing and writing web pages for these products, you should always make theselling path prominent, because it leads customers right to the online store where theycan make a purchase It doesn’t have to overwhelm the reader—half-page, seizure-inducing billboards are probably overkill—but it always has to be brainlessly accessible

The product landing page

Most users who go through the trouble of finding a particular company are likely going toclick on the Productslink in the main menu They should be rewarded with a landing pagethat focuses on actual product offerings, and doesn’t display large, Flash-based introduc-tory animations, wander down tangents talking about company history, or do anything elsethat detracts from the carefully crafted sales message In other words, do not deviate fromthe selling path

Take advantage of the space on the landing page to promote the benefits and high-levelselling points of the products Leaving the good sales copy and design elements to individ-ual product pages is self-defeating—that golden content can help drive customers deeperinto your site For instance, Figure 7-3 shows a product landing page for M-Audio, a com-pany that manufacturers professional audio equipment Notice the casual sales copy andcompelling photograph at the top of the page, plus the crisp photographs and brief prod-uct highlights that help funnel users toward the product in which they are most interested.Imagine if the product landing page were the only web page visitors could read about theproducts You would want to provide them with comprehensive subject matter, creating

an almost portal-like environment where they can learn everything they need to knowwithout hopping all over your corporate domain This focuses visitors into the selling path

Figure 7-3 The product landing page for M-Audio uses simple copy and a clean design to help users

find the product most closely matching their interests

To accomplish this, there are several key pieces of content that should appear in a productlisting Depending on the complexity of a company’s offerings, some of these might bemore feasible than others, but all will add value to the customer experience:

Retain a specific description of the displayed product line: If a page describes only

one product line, ensure that the content discusses what is being shown on thepage, not the greater family of products

Include a product-specific search feature: If the catalog is deep or old, or contains

many variations of pieces, it will help users find the perfect product faster if yougive them a dedicated search feature where they can query model numbers,dimensions, keywords, and more Traversing even the most elegantly designed hier-archy is slower than the type-click-find speed of a search engine

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Make sure the depth of the section’s architecture is accurately demonstrated: In

other words, make sure all product categories are represented and any gories are within easy clicking distance

subcate-Include a way of highlighting particular products: These products might be on sale,

or recently released, or coming soon, but users love “featured products” becausethey often take the guesswork out of where to go from the landing page

As with the corporate website’s homepage, these elements have to be carefully arranged

to help users find their way around the product catalog The goal is to direct users If donewell, visitors will rely on the design and copy of the product landing page to guide them

The individual product page

Once your reader has found your website and navigated through the product landingpage, they will arrive on a singular web page dedicated to the product in which they are(hopefully) most interested This is where web design and copywriting skills come intofull play, and where simple marketing messages have to work in tandem with technicaldescriptions

An individual product page should offer a comprehensive overview of the product, ing photos, testimonials and reviews, dimensions, availability, and technical specifications.Anything and everything about that specific product should be present and accounted for.The last thing your visitors want is information about the product scattered around thesite, so make sure every detail is centralized, focused, and accessible

includ-Figure 7-3 showed the product landing page for M-Audio includ-Figure 7-4 shows an individualproduct page with plenty of detail Following are some key attributes that should beincluded in a product page

Description The length of a product description is subject to just about every marketing

variable out there: how much there is to actually say, how many vice presidents of

mar-keting are involved, how long the marmar-keting people want the description, how far the

writer can then condense the text for easier web viewing, how much technical information

to mix in with the sales copy, how old the coffee is in the coffee maker, and whetherthere’s a full lunar eclipse this month

Many companies have printed brochures that describe their products at great length withcopious, flowery detail While it’s simple to grab the brochure copy and duplicate it insideHTML, this path of least resistance is usually not appropriate Text is not consumed equallybetween the mediums Marketing web copy thrives in brevity and punctual statements—bullets and two-sentence paragraphs are the norm; long-winded prose is ostracized.Some product descriptions take only a paragraph Others require pages The description ofthe product should be as long as it needs to be, and no more As long as the text followsbest practices in writing for the Web, people will consume what they want before making

a decision

Figure 7-4 M-Audio does a great job aggregating content into individual product pages.

Photos, images, and diagrams People love pictures It doesn’t matter if they’re

profes-sional photos or poorly lit Polaroids, glossy diagrams or low-resolution screenshots—whenpeople shop online, they want to see some substantial evidence that the product that hascaught their interest actually exists Smart companies understand this, and put their bestmarketing foot forward to make available the best images possible As you can see inFigure 7-4, M-Audio understands that their audience wants to see every nook and cranny

of their devices They make sure that their product pages contain high-resolution, sional images that give a very good sense of the products’ look and feel (They also allowusers to click on an image to bring up another screen with even bigger images and moredetail.)

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At a minimum, users should see a thumbnail of the product This does not have to be orate To avoid forcing users to squint, make sure that the image is at least 150 pixels wide.Providing a larger image when the thumbnail is clicked is almost always a good idea Thishigher-resolution version should appear in a new browser window, not because this con-stitutes better usability (which it really doesn’t), but because people expect and accept thisfunctionality that has been perpetuated by thousands of websites This window can beloaded several different ways:

elab-1.The simplest method involves adding the target attribute to the anchor tag, such as

<a href="/images/tractor-engine_large.jpg" title="View a higher resolutionphoto" target="_blank"><img src="/images/tractor-engine_thumbnail.jpgalt="tractor engine" /></a> This technique avoids JavaScript, which might bedisabled; the disadvantage is that the target attribute is deprecated in XHTML 1.0and beyond, and if included, will prevent the page’s markup from passing the W3Cvalidator

2.To open a new window while keeping the page valid, many developers useJavaScript A basic version would look like this: <a href="/images/tractor-engine_large.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href); return false;"><imgsrc="/images/tractor-engine_thumbnail.jpg" alt="tractor engine" /></a>

3.The previous JavaScript examples only load the images in a new window, but thelanguage also has the power to dictate the design of the browser window, such asthe width and height, whether the navigation items are visible, and whether thewindow is resizable Building off the previous example, a simple version might looklike <a href="/images/tractor-engine_large.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href, 'popupwindow', 'width=300,height=400,scrollbars,resizable');return false;" ><img src="/images/tractor-engine_thumbnail.jpgalt="tractor engine" /></a>

4.There are also many external scripts that handle this functionality as well RogerJohansson, author of the web design site 456 Berea Street, wrote a simple scriptthat loads any link with a rel="external" attribute in a new window, relegating thebehavior to an external file.1 Lightbox, another good option covered later, is apiece of JavaScript that loads images into a <div> that overlaps the main page Both

of these prevent the JavaScript from being embedded in the HTML, so the page size

is kept small and the HTML remains semantically strong

Generally, opening links in new windows is regarded as bad usability and accessibility tice, but in this case, users expect a thumbnail to open a new window with a larger image

prac-The one and only concrete rule about this entire discussion is to never make a thumbnail

link to an image that is not bigger If a higher-resolution version with increased detail isunavailable, do not link the thumbnail

Occasionally readers are provided more than one high-resolution image If you are viding an individual link to each, the anchor text of the links must be explicit, so readersknow what they are clicking to (You might even provide miniature thumbnails next to

pro-each, but make sure actual text accompanies the small images, otherwise the audience willjust see a group of ambiguous pictures.) In our example layout in Figure 7-5, you can seelinks designed with increasing complexity.

Figure 7-5 Showing additional high-resolution images can be done with

different levels of complexity

Images can also be clustered into a slideshow for increased efficiency The slideshowshould launch in a new browser window as if it were a singular picture, but provide

Forwardand Nextlinks so that users can browse through the images quickly Ideally, thedesign of the pop-up should also show the number of pictures and allow users to click toone directly This functionality can be built with a series of regular, minimal HTML pagesthat link to one another linearly inside the smaller browser window, or with moreadvanced web software There are two very popular scripts for managing slideshows:

1.SlideShowPro is a Flash component that uses an XML back-end and a Flash

inter-face to elegantly present clusters of photos It offers full visual customization to fitany site design, and can be coupled with a back-end tool for easy administration It

is available from www.slideshowpro.net

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2.Lightbox JS is a JavaScript-powered slideshow tool that is free and very easy to use.

Images on an HTML page are given a common rel attribute, and when clicked,load a semitransparent window that flips through the different pictures Version 2

is available as of this writing and is available from www.huddletogether.com/projects/lightbox2/

In addition to static photography, many product pages contain interactive demos or 360-degree QuickTime videos Designers and marketers should work together in craftingthe best possible product presentation within budget, time, and resource constraints.Obviously, bigger products benefit from more elaborate site designs (e.g., the website ofany major car manufacturer) But it’s important to design the mundane catalog items’ illus-trations and photography well, because the small touches of good design and usability candramatically amplify the clarity of information and can be a major contributor in convert-ing casual browsers into new customers

Supporting content While just about every product has a description, and most have a

picture or two, it is often worth supplementing that core content with material that might

be of interest to the reader Ideally, an individual product page should contain everything

a reader could possibly want to know about the item, including the following:

Case studies or testimonials: We’ll cover third-party validation later in the book, but

this is a perfect place to include some words from satisfied customers

News items: This might include press releases issued by the company, independent

write-ups and reviews of the product itself, or interviews with key corporatefigures

Technical documents: Whitepapers, technical specifications, best-practice

docu-ments, or anything else that might appear to a narrower segment of the readershipcould be added as well These are typically in PDF or Microsoft Word format, butcould also be converted to HTML

Marketing collateral: These are the two-page datasheets of multi-page booklets

that serve to market the product in the physical world While these can ment the page’s primary marketing copy, be careful of overly redundant messaging

comple-Related products: If a particular product is part of a greater portfolio, or if it’s

designed to work in tandem with other independent programs (like the main cations that comprise Microsoft Office), it would be helpful to link to them rightfrom the relevant product page so the reader can understand the context of theitem they are reviewing

appli-As we discussed, the bigger the product, the more budget and resources are dedicated tothat product’s marketing In addition, more resources are pumped into products that arenot lost in a sea of other offerings; if a software company produces only a few titles, thenthey are going to focus their efforts into designing the heck out of the product pages sincerevenue is reliant upon fewer avenues of revenue

In Figure 7-6, you can see an example of a well-designed product page from Extensis Inaddition to the core content in the central column, case studies and technical documents

Figure 7-6 Extensis provides plenty of supporting content on this product page Case studies,

technical documents, and detailed specs round out the description in the center

Shopping cart link Your site is going to either have e-commerce capability or not If it

doesn’t, but your company relies on a network of distributors, you should point people tothe place where they can find a dealer or reseller (such as in the left column of Figure 7-6)

If your site does have e-commerce—meaning that people can fill out a shopping cart andpay for the items without leaving the domain—it’s imperative to provide users the ability

to add items to their cart with a single click from the context of the individual productpage Try at all costs to avoid a separate shopping area, where users have to search for theproducts all over again in order to make a purchase

In creating a link or button to the shopping cart, a user can never have too much mation If the link is driving them to a third-party site to capture the purchase (such asGoogle Checkout or PayPal), tell them where they are going Also, state the price of theproduct right on its page Revealing the cost up front will lead to fewer abandoned shop-ping carts

infor-Services page design

Almost all the design and content guidelines from products are just as applicable to ices A company’s service landing page needs to be sexy and marketing-savvy, and not justlist the services, but provide an introduction that generates interest in the reader evenbefore they commit a click

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Like product pages, individual service pages should have a thorough description, ing information, and as many images as possible to help convey the weight of the market-ing message Testimonials, case studies, and other pieces of independent validation play abig role in pushing users into fulfilling the call to action (discussed in the followingsection).

support-Because users cannot make a spontaneous buying decision, this supporting contentbecomes all the more critical, which is why services pages can be long and saturated withdetail Also, most companies will offer fewer services than products; managing a few hun-dred products in an online catalog is relatively easy compared to the nightmare of manag-ing more than a dozen unique services Clients will deliberate forever before purchasing aservice, and many of them will consume every word of supplemental text available

Redefining the call to action

The lack of the shopping cart, which is the key ingredient to impulse buying, also forces a

company to consider their call to action more carefully A call to action (also called a “call

to forward” in some circles) is a directive you provide the prospect—it presents to themthe next step you would like them to take They are most commonly found in pure adver-tising such as e-mail marketing where you are trying to make a hard sell, such as “Buy nowand save 20 percent off your purchase!”

For a shopping cart–based site, calls to action are easy: add the products to your cart and

then buy them For service-based companies, calls to action have to be more marketing and less sales in nature The language and suggested steps are more subtle; you can’t push

people to buy a service on the spot, so you have to ask them to take another iterative step.Some examples include the following:

Ask the readers to make contact with you: By pushing them to your contact page

(or providing an e-mail link or miniature contact form right on the product pageitself), you are receiving permission to contact them directly Make sure you cap-ture their vital information: name, e-mail, phone, and areas of interest

Offer the opportunity to download additional marketing materials: This might be

technical whitepapers, case studies, or full product brochures—as long as it’s vant and valuable to the reader For particularly significant content such as long,technical whitepapers or third-party ROI studies, you may want to ask the reader togive their name and e-mail address in exchange

rele-Provide a means for readers to stay up to date about the service: The simplest way

is an e-mail mailing list or an RSS feed, but you may also offer a traditional mailinglist as well, depending on the nature of the business

In all cases, you want to capture the reader’s information, because even a name and e-mailaddress can be leveraged into targeted, customized marketing campaigns

Language and design The language and design of the call to action is important The

ver-biage has to be action-oriented, specific, short, and bordering on bossy You’re not out tobeg; you’re out to clearly indicate the next task the reader should take Let’s take our

the newsletter, you can be just as direct “Submit your e-mail to stay up to date about ourservice” is better than “If you give us your name and e-mail address, we’ll periodically sendyou an update about our services.”

Choose words that incite action: submit, contact, register, watch, learn, download, click,get, view, and so forth While in truth you are asking for users to give up their contactinformation, you want to be politely demanding in order to spur action

The visual language of the call to action is just as important Like the words you choose,the design reflects the need to take action At its most basic, the link will be just that: anHTML link But a plain-text link is passive There are billions all over the web, and none ofthem look much more clickable than any other Inciting action requires a little moredesign flare

Buttons are popular because they have a more corporeal feel, and feel as if they’ll dosomething important when clicked (And from a pure usability standpoint, buttons have alarger click area—it’s easier to target a beefy rectangle than a small string of words.) Inaddition, visual cues can also bring attention to the call to action Bolder colors, arrows,drop shadows, and larger fonts all indicate that the reader’s attention is required

Figure 7-7 shows a well-designed product landing page from Joyent In addition to a monial and good marketing copy, there is a large call-to-action button that is clearlydesigned to be clicked In addition, every product page on the site has a contact form atthe bottom to drive users to make contact while they are on the relevant page

testi-Figure 7-7 Joyent’s product page for Accelerator is a good example of a page for products that

have to be sold without a shopping cart The page features plenty of contextual information aswell as a contact form and a large call-to-action button

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Unique selling story

Whether you have a product, service, or both, there is almost always something thatmakes you unique, some part of your sales story that sets you apart from your competi-tion, and gives you a leverage point when marketing It could range from a mundane butimportant fact (“all of our products use domestic, grain-fed beef”) to an outrageous story(“our founder came up with the idea for this product will hang-gliding naked through theHimalaya mountains”)

This story is part of your sales process, and should be integrated into the website.Sometimes it’s significant enough to warrant its own section, but most of the time, itnestles in with your products and services because it helps give context and supportinginformation to readers Consider the following examples:

Many microbreweries have a page dedicated to their long tradition of only usingthe best hops and other ingredients in their beer, and how they retain the recipespassed down from generation to generation The quaint story isn’t going to sell anybeer by itself, but it helps build brand value, which in turn helps the beer performbetter in the market Figure 7-8 shows an example of this type of page

A technology company might have a page dedicated to their patents and majortechnology breakthroughs This doesn’t have to try and sell anything, but it givesreaders perspective on the company’s innovative attitude and its achievements

A website for a professional speaker might contain a long bio on why the person isunique, and what life experiences qualify that person as someone worth paying toaddress a large audience

The unique selling story is primarily a brand-building initiative Its value is difficult to tify because it does not directly lead to sales, but rather reinforces the marketing messagesthat support sales It is designed to build interest in the company (or individual) and theirproducts and services; it should be offered as contextual, reinforcing content when thereader is on the actual product or service page

quan-The unique selling story should not be confused with a unique selling proposition, whichessentially describes to prospects what makes a company’s product or service strongerthan the competition, and is most prevalent in traditional advertising