Category Archives: Usability

Don’t neglect your visitors by providing bad web copy

Posted on by admin

I’m not sure why it always surprises, shocks or baffles me when people don’t understand that website copy is not there purely for search engines. What is there not to understand? Only visitors will convert into hard cash, not search engines. Therefore, copy should be optimised for both search engines and visitors. It’s not a case of writing copy for one or the other.

So, bearing this in mind I “whoop whooped” for joy when I read Keith Gibbons’ article “Five reasons your content is damaging your brand”. The snippet that especially pleased me was this:

“Google is clever, but it isn’t a person. Filling your site with utterly useless but unique and keyword rich content will sometimes drive traffic through the search engines and onto your pages, especially for less competitive terms.

However, lots of companies seem to forget that, after they’ve risen in the Google ratings, they need to actually appeal to the individuals who have clicked onto the site.

If the content isn’t useful, doesn’t immediately direct them to something useful, or is badly written then they will leave and your efforts have been wasted.”

Not only does engaging, useful copy encourage visitors to stay on the site, but copy which is structured in a way that makes it easy to read, whilst including plenty of calls to action is more likely to persuade visitors to convert, whether that be completing a purchase, making an enquiry or downloading a piece of content. The value of website copy in getting the most out of your visitors is not something to be overlooked. This is why we always stress the importance of getting it right to our clients. Good copy can be responsible for the following:

  • Increased rankings on the search engines
  • …and therefore increased traffic from search engines
  • Reduced bounce rates as visitors can immediately see that a web page is relevant to their search query
  • Increased conversion rates
  • Increased trust in the company’s professionalism
  • Increased perception of authority within the industry

So, before you sit down to write web copy take time to think about what you expect when visiting a website, especially for the first time. Do you expect it to inform you of who the company is and what they do? Do you want to know fairly quickly that a site can fulfil your needs, especially following a search query? Do you want to be told how you can achieve your goal on the site? Would you like information on the products / services on offer? Do you want to be able to read their content easily? Do you want to feel that the company knows its stuff?

If you expect these things from your own experience of navigating the web then it only make senses that your website visitors will demand the same of you.

With this in mind, when writing copy for your website I urge you to consider the following:

  • Include relevant search terms in page titles and throughout the copy, but remember to avoid keyword stuffing and please, please make it readable!
  • Keep your language clear and simple
  • Maintain a consistent style and tone throughout the site
  • Limit each paragraph to one idea and use descriptive sub headings to split copy into easily digestible chunks. This aids visitors in scanning your web copy
  • Consider using lists or bullet points for the same reason as above
  • Front load your copy so the conclusion is first followed by the how, where, when and why. This helps people to understand the nature of the content and decide if they want to continue reading
  • Include plenty of calls to action to encourage visitors to convert according to the goals of the website; ‘add to basket’, ‘call us now’, ‘compare products’ are just a few examples. Calls to action are important because, generally speaking, if you do not instruct your site visitors on what you want them to do, chance are, they wont do it!
  • Make bold important words, phrases or calls to action
  • Cross link relevant words and phrases within the copy to direct visitors to other pages of relevance on your site

By following this common sense approach you will soon get into the habit of creating copy which is valuable to both your search engine optimisation efforts and the experience of visitors to your site. Bear in mind that, increasingly, search engines are analysing user data, such as bounce rates and time spent on site, and beginning to incorporate this data into their ranking algorithms (which in turn determine where your web pages are ranked on the search engine results page (SERP)). With the quality and relevancy of web copy playing a major part in a users experience of your site, and therefore whether they stick around (or not as the case may be), it’s vital to follow the golden rule of web copy…

Write for users first, search engines second

Until next time…

Improving your bounce rates…Jump to it!

Posted on by admin

What are bounce rates and how do they affect me? I hear you ask…

Well, for starters, Google Analytics defines a bounce as any visit where the visitor arrives on a site and views only one page before they exit. So, in the eyes of a search engine, high bounce rates are a good indicator of a poor site experience or perhaps demonstrate the site’s lack of relevance to the search query entered by the user. Therefore, this means that bounce rates could be a significant factor affecting search engine rankings.

So, the relevance of bounce rates to you, as a site owner, is that not only will high bounce rates potentially reduce your rankings, but it also means you’re losing out on conversions.

But where can I find out how bouncy my site is? (Unfortunately not a particularly technical term but I like it)

You can take a look at bounce rates for specific pages on your site via its Google Analytics account. When investigating bounce rates on your site, keep in mind that in Internet terms, 50% is a moderate bounce rate so a page with a bounce rate below this is good news.

However, if you find that your pages have bounce rates higher than the 50% bench mark then you may wish to take some action to encourage visitors to move past the entry page and peruse the site further.

But how do I improve my bounce rates?

Hey presto! You’re in luck…below I have compiled some points you should consider in order to improve your page bounce rates and ultimately increase rankings and conversions. So sit up straight and pay attention…pens at the ready? Let’s go…

Navigation and Layout

  • Is the navigation and page layout consistent with the rest of the site?
  • Are there links to related pages (or products on an e-commerce site) to encourage navigation through the site?
  • Is the key information positioned above the fold of the page? A gripping image as an eye catcher and a short teaser paragraph are also key for encouraging visitors to stay on the site / convert for you.
  • Is there a sufficient amount of white space? Are there too many distractions putting the visitor off completing a conversion?

Copy

  • Think about the layout of your copy…Is the text broken up? Do you use bullet points? Have you bolded out important words? Think about making your copy as easy to read as possible for visitors.
  • Does the page include visible calls to action encouraging visitors to take a particular action? It is especially important that these appear above the fold of the page.
  • Are titles within your page copy bold and clear at the top of the page so the visitor can clearly see what the page is about?
  • Is there a sufficient amount of optimised content on the page to engage visitors? We usually recommend approximately 150 – 200 words per page. Remember to include relevant keywords in your copy.
  • Is the font a reasonable size making your content easier to read?

General

  • Are your contact details visible on every page in case the visitor has a question regarding your services or products? Can visitors tell how to contact you?
  • Do you provide good quality, high resolution images?
  • Does the site offer a search function in case the visitor cannot find what they are looking for on the landing page?

Points to consider for an e-commerce product page

  • Can visitors tell what to click on to place an order? Is there a “Buy now” button available above the fold of the page?
  • Can visitors find price information on the product?
  • Is there a sufficient description of the product / service on offer?

When considering your bounce rates please be aware that although the lower the bounce rate the better, this does not account for visitors who may be finding your site and contacting you straight away. These visitors may still be enquiring however as they do not navigate through your site, they will also be classed as a bouncing visitor.

All in all, anything which improves the usability of your website will have a positive knock on effect on your bounce rates and will likely increase conversions. Implementing any of the recommendations above is a quick, simple and effective way of improving bounce rates on your site, so what are you waiting for? Jump to it!

Logical URL structure that benefits users and search engines

Posted on by Suzanne Taylor

I have just finished reading “2003 Called; They’d like their URL structure back” and must say that I fully agree with Rae’s advice. Whilst it was nice to reminisce back to SEO in 2003 (I was just-a-learning back then), this is something that I think should be cleared up.

The issue of URL structure is still a question that is frequently asked, mainly from developers who have the freedom to create new site URLs that either 1) run directly from the root domain or 2) are subfolder based. The above article provides good examples of each method along with the history and reasoning why developers, and some misguided search engine optimisers, started to (unnecessarily) favour all pages running off the route domain.

My recommendation would be to structure your URLs according to the page’s location within the site architecture. Having logical site architecture is not only important for users but this hierarchy will also help the search engines determine the importance of the page via its location within the site. For example, if your home page links to a top level services page, which then links to each of your primary services and from there to each individual service page, the architecture would look rather like this:


Using the above architecture as an example, it would be best case for your URLs to reflect the structure of the site using relevant subfolders as follows:

Not only does this indicate the location of each page to the search engines, but users will be able to determine where they are in the site (which is particularly important when entering the site through an internal page as opposed to the homepage). Having a sense of place on the site is one of the most important elements for a usable website as this helps users feel at ease and in control (albeit implicitly).

Two of the most effective ways to communicate sense of place on a site is by a breadcrumb trail and by the structure of your URLs. I would therefore always advise structuring your URLs according to the page’s location within the site architecture.

As a side note, it is also good advice to include relevant terms into your URL as this will help inform visitors (and search engines) as to the content present on that page. There are also other points to consider if you are rewriting URLs, most notably to correctly implement permanent 301 redirects on a page by page basis in order to pass weighting from old pages to new, as well as link ‘juice’. (However we would advise that you should rewrite URLs only if absolutely necessary).

Digital marketing snakes and ladders

Posted on by admin

I don’t know if you saw it but there was a great episode of Property Snakes and Ladders on Channel 4 last week, which saw Sarah Beeny working with a couple who seemed determined to ignore all her good advice and do things the hard way.

They made one mistake after another and only at the last minute did they do a U-turn and finally follow Sarah’s advice to turn their property into a number of flats as opposed to the swanky LA pad they had in mind (next to a derelict tube station in a somewhat run down area of Rotherhithe, East London!). Unfortunately this U-turn came far too late in the day and the couple looked set to lose almost half a million pounds on the project. Eeek!!

I guess by now you are wondering where I am going with this. Stick with me because I could see great similarities in the way Sarah Beeny works with her clients and how digital agencies work with theirs. Why did this couple ask for Sarah Beeny’s help and then almost completely ignore it?

If you are an agency, does this sound familiar? And if you are a client have you continuously challenged your agency to the point where nothing actually gets done? The best agencies will provide very detailed, clear advice on the best way to grow your business through the web using techniques such as website optimisation, link building, social media and content. But virtually all consultants and agencies report that in numerous cases their advice is ignored, despite being paid good money for their time.

I am sure that the beautiful Sarah Beeny will agree; the most successful projects she has worked on are those where the client has listened fully to her advice and implemented it. I know this is true for the projects that I have managed.

However, the similarities do not end there. The change of program name from “Property Ladder” to “Property Snakes and Ladders” is indicative of the market that we find ourselves in today. The housing market has crashed and with it the demand for the vast majority of products and services has done likewise. It is therefore more important than ever to ensure you have a strong online presence, that your site is able to convert visitors into enquiries/sales and that you focus on retaining those lovely new customers you acquire. Therefore, if you have employed an agency based on a thorough review and understanding of their approach, requests for case studies, testimonials and references, it is vitally important that you go on to implement the recommendations that they make.

The key thing underpinning this of course is trust. By doing your homework you will find it much easier to let go of what you think you is right and listen to their sound advice.

So how do you get this heightened level of trust? Here are a few more pointers:

  • Firstly check out the agency before you sign up. Ask to speak to their clients and search on the web to check out their reputation. Find out long they have been in business and ask to see evidence of successful campaigns
  • Do some research around the topics of SEO, social media, etc but be willing to learn. Remember not everything you read on the web is true and this is particularly evident when it comes to search marketing where everyone has a different opinion. In the end, an established and successful agency will have the experience to know what is best for your business.
  • Make sure you are aware of what is involved in the project; how much time, cost and work is going to be required and commit the appropriate resource. Don’t let things disappear down the dreaded ‘black hole’.
  • Make sure your agency is open about what they are doing. A good agency will be in contact regularly asking for feedback and discussing creative ideas. Transparency is key; run a mile if there is any suggestion of ‘cloak and dagger’ techniques or especially if the agency askS to have access to your website without telling you what they are going to do.
  • Remember there are no magic formulas to achieving your goals online. If it sounds to be good to be true, it probably is.

In summary, if you have done your homework and employed an expert the worst thing you can do to damage the relationship, and limit the results you are likely to achieve, is to ignore their recommendations. You have employed an agency for their expertise. Make sure you are prepared and willing to listen to their advice. By all means question things; a good agency will want you to learn but your goals will only be met by taking the advice of an expert and running with it.

This all reminds me of one of the first things I read when I joined Leapfrogg all those years ago. It was pinned to the wall just next to Ben and was a quote by much respected search marketer, Jill Whalen of High Rankings.

“..no SEO company in the world will be able to help you unless you are ready to forget about what you think you want and learn more about what you really need’.

I could not have put it better myself!

The case of SEO ‘Boondoggle’ – Leapfrogg’s view

Posted on by admin

After reading Jill Whalen’s recent article “Is Most of SEO Just a Boondoggle?” (which I admit I was subconsciously drawn to because of the amusing title!) I was doubly intrigued by her subsequent interview with Andrew Goodman in which she upheld all of her claims. In these articles Whalen has set about trying to debunk some SEO myths, or in her words, SEO techniques which are “boondoggle”.

So, to sum up, Whalen doesn’t believe the following are valuable SEO techniques:

  • Page Rank sculpting via nofollow links
  • “Fixing” of Keyword Meta tags
  • Search engine submission
  • Keyword density
  • XML site maps (for the most part)
  • H1 tags
  • Keyword rich URLs (only worth it if re-developing a site)

However she does believe the following techniques provide benefits for sites:

  • Descriptive internal anchor text
  • Rewriting content for your target audience
  • Title tag changes
  • Flattening of site architecture

While I whole-heartedly agree with Whalen regarding some of the techniques referred to as “boondoggle”, namely Page Rank sculpting, Keyword Meta tag fixing and search engine submission, I do not necessarily agree with the others.

Sure, the term “keyword density” refers back to a time when the majority of search engine marketers doggedly measured the number of times a keyword appeared within a page of copy. And even though I don’t agree with this measurement practice, I do believe that it is imperative to ensure popular / relevant keywords appear within page copy. It is important to include keywords in copy to ensure search engines deem the page relevant to a search query but they need to be incorporated with care so as not to impede the readability of the page for site visitors. Including keywords in copy also allows visitors to identify that the page is relevant to their search query which will hopefully encourage them to stick around on your site.

In terms of the SEO techniques Whalen supports I do agree that descriptive internal anchor text, rewriting content for your target audience and title tag changes are all important. For example, a client recently came to us with concerns that they weren’t ranking above their competitors for a certain keyword relevant to their business. After ensuring other on-the-page factors were in place we suggested tweaking their home page title tag to include this term and hey presto(!) their rankings improved and they shot up from 12th to 3rd position on Google! It is very satisfying that something so simple has the potential to provide great results when other on-the-page avenues have already been implemented.

I also agree with Whalen on the issue of flattening site architecture, to an extent. Even though search engines generally attribute the weighting of pages depending on how close they are to the home page this does not mean that a site should be completely flat as hierarchical structure is very important. Implementing a logical hierarchical structure helps search engines understand which parts of your website are more important than others and it also aids usability for your visitors. For more information on the importance of good site architecture take a peek at this great post by a fellow Frogger.

However, I’m reluctant to place too much emphasis on looking at these SEO factors individually. At Leapfrogg we believe in a holistic approach to ‘on the page’ SEO (or as we prefer to call it “website optimisation”). In our experience we have found that implementing a combination of techniques makes a positive difference to the client’s site even if the individual parts have little or no effect when implemented on their own. Its very much about the sum of all parts.

I think it’s also vital not to place total emphasis on using technical SEO techniques to achieve rankings for a website as this neglects the importance of usability and conversion. Surely the best approach to website optimisation is to implement a range of technical factors as well as making sure the site is as usable as possible, along with great content. This approach is focused on much more than rankings…it has the user at heart; because at the end of the day, rankings are useless if your website cannot convert visitors into customers.

This is why we adopt a range of techniques to ensure the site is built on a good foundation technically, as well as conforming to certain usability standards to encourage conversions and repeat visits.

What I really wanted to get across with this post is that I believe a holistic approach covers all bases which helps ensure we can truly help clients acquire, convert and retain customers online. I believe website optimisation isn’t solely about fiddly, technical aspects behind a website (although these are essential!) but it is also about making sure a site is usable and engaging. What’s the point of getting a visitor to your site if you aren’t encouraging them to take a look around. So rankings are all very well but if no-one wants to stay on your site once they get there then that is just boondoggle!

Looking to succeed online? Be guided by these three words

Posted on by Ben Potter

At the turn of the year I wrote a post on this blog hoping predicting that the impending recession would see many of the aptly named ‘snake-oil SEO salesman’ go out of business as buyers become more aware of what is required to succeed in search engine marketing and in particular, demand that companies have both the ability and track record in delivering ROI.

Unfortunately, the reports I am hearing suggest that this is not the case. If anything even more companies and individuals appear to be popping up offering ‘guaranteed top search engine rankings’ and ‘top website ranks’. I said back at the turn of the year and I repeat it again now; sometimes I just want to find these people and wring their necks. They prey on the naivety of what remains a relatively uninformed audience, they rarely deliver, don’t even pay up on their ‘guarantees’ when they don’t deliver (due to their cleverly written contracts), devalue the better agencies and ultimately inflict great damage on the reputation of the search industry.

So in light of the fact that the recession seems to be breeding, not wiping out, the ‘snake-oil salesmen’, please, please take heed of my advice; there are no magic formula’s, tricks or otherwise to achieving online success, especially where search engines are concerned. If it sounds too good to be true…that’s because it is. No search engine marketer can guarantee any ranking, for any keyword, on any search engine – FACT.

To get some perspective, and avoid bad decision making, I recommend going back to the ‘old school’. If you ever studied marketing at university do you remember reading about the customer life cycle? Although, admittedly, I have forgotten a great deal of what I learnt at university (nothing to do with the cheap alcohol, honest), the customer life cycle has always stuck with me. If you are not familiar with it, it is a term used to describe the steps a customer goes through when considering, purchasing and maintaining loyalty to a product or service. This theory is as relevant today as the day it was written but for reasons unbeknown to me is often left at the door when considering a search engine marketing strategy. Too many people; agencies, clients and especially those nasty ‘snake oil salesman’, are still focused on gaining search engine rankings; nothing else, just being well placed on the search engines. But to successfully grow your business through the web you must consider what happens once you have got the traffic to your website and also how you maintain a relationship with those people who do choose to buy from you.

So lets look at three stages of the customer life cycle that should arm you with an overriding strategic formula that separates the long term approach that is necessary to achieve online success from the short term nonsense spouted by ‘snake oil man’.

Acquisition
This is concerned with driving targeted traffic to your website. The amount of traffic will depend to a large extent on your ‘reach’; in simple terms how far and wide you can spread your message so as to engage your target audience and bring them back to your website.

Search engines are at the very centre of a successful acquisition strategy but search engine marketing cannot operate in isolation. An effective online marketing strategy combines search engine marketing with social media and content strategies to maximise reach. The last year or two has seen the gradual convergence of these channels to the point where one cannot operate in isolation of the other two. A piece of video content for example, can be used to engage your audience on your own website. However, it can also be used to enter a social space, such as YouTube. In turn, Google index the content and feature the video in their search results.

Conversion
It’s all very well driving targeted traffic to your website. But turning these visitors into customers is an altogether different challenge and can only be achieved by delivering an intuitive user-experience along with engaging content, and of course an offering that is different to that of your competitors. Therefore, when we talk of the word ‘optimisation’ it should be used to describe not optimising for search engines but optimising for visitors. Question an agency about their approach to optimisation; what are they doing to improve the user-experience? What content do they suggest can be added to the site to make it a better resource for website visitors? If they are only interested in stuffing the copy you already have with numerous occurrences of a keyword or adding some Meta tags to your site, it’s time to walk away.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that optimisation is not a one time hit. It is a continual process where changes are made to your site based on analysis of stats, such as Google Analytics, user-testing and the inevitable shifts in your business, competitors, search engines and the Internet at large.

Retention
Repeat business is an essential component in achieving online success because as the old adage states, it is a great deal cheaper, and easier, to sell to somebody who has bought from you previously than to somebody who hasn’t at all.

To encourage repeat sales you must deliver great service and an engaging overall experience with your brand. In an age where social media sites, such as blogs, forums and review sites offer an open invitation for customers to say both good and bad things about your business, products/services and market at large, you must deliver on your promises. At the same time you must also embrace social media and other tools, such as email, as a means of creating open dialogue with your customers and prospects.

By focusing on these key stages of the customer life cycle you can increase ‘reach’ and therefore targeted traffic to your website. Through initial, and ongoing, optimisation of your website you will improve conversion rates leading to increased sales. By analysing your post-sales processes and communication with customers you can improve customer retention rates therefore maximising the revenue generated by your website and returns for your digital spend.

Of course, so as not to turn this into a dissertation, I have really only touched on each of these stages and what each of them entails. But I hope that it will go some way to showing there is no magic formula to achieving success through search engine marketing (unless you want to call the customer lifecycle itself a formula!). So, in making a decision on an agency or indeed any marketing decisions that you take in-house, go back to the marketing books you studied at university and start applying old-school theory to new-school environments. Because ultimately, nothing has changed other than the environment you are selling in. You have a product, an audience and a means of getting your message to them. In choosing to engage with your company, the customer still works through the same buying cycle as they did in 1978. So get back to basics, use common sense and let’s rid the industry once and for all of ‘snake oil man’. Because as I stated in my last article on this topic, if you are not educated and therefore fooled into buying crap, there will always be people only too willing to sell it to you!

Quick tips to increase your online conversion rate

Posted on by Suzanne Taylor

Do you sell directly from your website or you use it to generate leads and enquiries? Is your site working hard enough to convert visitors into customers? Often just a few basic tweaks to a website, focused on the user, can lead to a significant increase in your conversion rate. And even small increases in your conversion rate can have a significant impact on your bottom line due to the uplift in enquiries or sales. In the current climate (and at any other time for that matter!) it is vital that you are making the most of the traffic your site is receiving. Remember, there is little value in increasing traffic from search engines, or any other source, if your site then fails to engage visitors and ultimately turn them into customers.

Website optimisation should focus on users, not search engines, because as lovely as those search engines are they will not fill in your enquiry form or buy your products; but human visitors will. And often by getting the user-experience right many aspects of SEO are taken care of anyway. Take a look at the tips below and see how your site compares; could it be working harder for you?

Try to keep the layout of each page in a standard format

Visitors want to find the information they seek as quickly and easily as possible. So be consistent and present your information in a way that is easy to identify and quick to read.

Use consistent intuitive navigation

Internet users have an expectation of what a website should look like and how it functions. Don’t confuse them by doing something ‘creative’, it will only lead to confusion and dissatisfaction, and ultimately the user going somewhere else.

Write for the Web

You need engaging and useful copy, but remember to break it up into easily skimmed topics. People will read a newspaper from front-to-back but tend to skim and jump around on a website. Make it easy for them to find what they want and get more info.

Include clear and concise ‘calls to action’

Visitors to your site need to be told what you want them to do next. It’s up to you to lead them through your site so they end up where you want them to!

Always have a consistent link to the home page

Include a link back to the homepage from every other page on your site.

Build a Site Map

Yes, people do use them! The bigger your site, the more you need one. And they also help search engines find all of the content on your site.

Phone number/contact details

To help build trust between your site visitor and your company, make sure that you are easily contactable. Not only include a ‘Contact Us’ page, but include your telephone number on every page of your site. There is nothing more frustrating than wanting to talk to a company, and not being able to find a number!

Make it easy to buy/enquire

Don’t over complicate the end game. If you have an ecommerce site, limit the buying process to the smallest number of clicks possible and don’t ask for personal details unless you give the user a good reason for doing so!

Similarly if the purpose of your site is to generate leads and enquiries, don’t ask users to fill end endless forms online – they won’t.

Keep the buying process as light and simple as possible

After I give my credit card number over to a website I do not want to see “something interesting and cool”. I want to see my purchase processed in a “normal” and secure way. You can vary it a bit and make it look nice, but people usually don’t like “cute” when it comes to their finances being handled by strangers.

If your site just isn’t doing the business consider implementing changes geared towards improving the user-experience. And remember, optimisation is an ongoing process. Using data available from free stats tools, such as Google Analytics you can see how visitors are interacting with your website and make ongoing tweaks to continually improve user-experience and therefore your conversion rate.

The importance of customer care ‘after the click’

Posted on by Ben Potter

I’ve been in the market for a netbook – a mini laptop with broadband internet connection. I looked around online and placed an order with one of the mobile operators.

The process was very straight forward and painless.

I chose the laptop, decided on the contract plan and placed the order. Bosh!

So far so good.

Some time later I received an email confirming the purchase of my “mobile”. As the company is a mobile phone operator, I did not mind too much that they seem unable to differentiate between a laptop with modem and a mobile phone. It was a standard email after all!

Later on that afternoon I received a further email letting me know that my mobile (again!) had been sent and that it would be delivered by courier on Saturday 11th. The email referred to a courier tracking number, but crucially that information was missing.

Saturday came and I waited at home all morning – no delivery.

Monday – Bank Holiday

Tuesday – still nothing, so I decided to call their customer services department to find out what was going on. This is where the real trouble started -  not a single contact number on their website anywhere!

It took me an age to find an instant messenger type service for people who had a query before their purchase. I fired off a message asking for a phone number for customer services, which I was given. However, this number turned out to be wrong.

I sent another message and was given another number – this one turned out to be correct. I spoke to someone who took all my details regarding the non delivery and promised to get back to me.

Wednesday the usb modem arrives – no sign of the actual netbook

I’m a bit fed up now so today I call the head office – having obtained the number from 118 500.

I wanted to talk to their customer relations director whose name was on the letter that accompanied the modem. The receptionist kindly told me that “he does not take customer calls” before putting me through to customer services who I had spoken to on Tuesday.

I then noticed a different number on the receipt which I called and after a couple of minutes I got my answer! Laptops are delivered two days after the modem. Why, I don’t know, but it would have been nice to have known that at the outset.

I am now disgruntled and unimpressed and I haven’t even received the whole product yet!

The lessons here for any online retailer are key.

You’ve probably thought a lot about how a visitor navigates around your site and what their purchasing experience is like. You’ve worked hard to make it as easy and obvious as possible. You’ve instilled a sense of trust by clearly showing payment options and the fact that the site is secure, but are you giving enough thought to what happens after the final click.

Based on my experience this week, here are my top five things to think about:

1. Make it easy for customers to be able to talk to you. Your phone number should be clearly displayed not only on your website but also included in any email correspondence.

2. When you send out confirmation emails, make them personal and make sure you refer to the actual product the person bought. Also do include a tracking number if you refer to one!

3. Make it clear exactly what is going to happen and when, and stick to it. If you cannot stick to the promise you made, let the customer know in advance.

4. Send a follow up email after delivery to check that everything is okay and your customer is happy.

5.  Invite feedback. It’s the only way you’re going to improve.

And if you don’t? Your unhappy customer may write a blog post about it. However, they might not be quite so nice not to include your name!

Pretty Websites Do Not Automatically Win Popularity Contests

Posted on by admin

I don’t know if I’m speaking for all my fellow digital marketers when I say that I love love LOVE it when I find an article about website optimisation in the mainstream news. So when I stumbled across an article on the Guardian website I did a little jump for joy. The article in question is Jack Schofield’s Web Design Trumps Graphic Design. What got me excited about the article was the recognition that pretty websites are not necessarily usable websites. Schofield highlights the very plain fact that the most used / popular websites on the internet are ones that would by no means be in the “Top 10 Best Most Beautiful Websites” countdown.

The examples he gave to prove his point were Amazon, Craigslist, Digg, eBay, Expedia, Facebook, IMDb, MySpace, TripAdvisor, Yahoo and Wikipedia. None of these sites would win a beauty contest but they are no doubt extremely popular sites.

My work revolves around website optimisation which in part includes making clients’ websites more usable for visitors, to help them seek out information, find contact details for the company in question or perhaps make a purchase. All websites are designed, built and tweaked according to compromise. Compromise between the client, their digital marketing agency and the web developer. Getting the right balance between a pretty site design and a site that is usable is the holy grail. Schofield sums this up nicely: “most people don’t go on the web to look at sites, they go to use them…appearance is usually less important than usability, readability, reliability, speed, and the quality of the content”.

It doesn’t matter if your site has some really great flash or some really nifty graphics, if visitors can’t use it, the content is not up to scratch or all your brilliant design efforts cause it to be as slow as a sloth, you will not reach your goals and your website will be up the proverbial creek without a paddle. So, in order to provide a great site for your customers which encourages them to convert, the rule is to think logically and not to get caught up in fancy designs when something simpler would be far more effective.

Credit Crunch Can’t Stamp Out Usability Market

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As the UK credit crunch continues to dominate the headlines, including those of our very own blog (check out Why Cut Digital Marketing out of your budget when consumers are spending more online) I thought it would be a good idea to draw your attention to an article I recently read. Lorraine Paterson’s article Economic Downturn Puts Usability Into Focus describes how more shoppers are turning to the internet to do their shopping as the credit crunch continues and as a result we see an increased focus on website usability.

Internet shopping has its advantages in a climate such as this, it is easier to compare prices for a specific product online than it is trawling around the shops and more often than not internet prices are cheaper than in-store. The current economic climate is perfect for companies to take a competitive advantage by making their websites more usable to capture and entice online spenders to part with their cash.

Now is the time for e-commerce sites to increase their spending for online marketing, not reduce it. If there are more people searching the internet for a product you sell online then you would be crazy to miss out on these potential sale opportunities. So why not check out some ways to increase your website’s usability especially if you are an e-commerce site. Now is the time to make sure your website is up to scratch in terms of usability and cash in!

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