The Conversion Scientist ARCHIVE™

Using Notifications and Confirmations to Engage and Convert

Six mistakes that you can turn into opportunities

In a post on the American Marketing Association blog, I’ve presented my list of best practices for notification and clarification emails. These are golden opportunities to continue the conversation with an engaged prospect and move them closer to becoming a customer or a user of what you offer.

Notifications are sent when someone requests something from your web site. They can be triggered by a download, registration, demo, webinar, signup, contact inquiry, service request, or customer support call.

Each one should move your conversation with this person further along.

We see these as simply informational, but they should also provide additional value.

The Top 6 Mistakes

Mistake #1: Not sending notifications and confirmations

Mistake #2: Not sending enough notifications

Mistake #3: Not helping new users get started

Mistake #4: Not tracking the performance of your notification and confirmation e-mails

Mistake #5: Not sending quickly

Mistake #6: Not offering that next piece of information

Get the details on the AMA blog.

Photo courtesy http://www.sxc.hu/profile/k_vohsen

The Proper Use of Flash Headers

Flash will usually decrease your conversion rates

Executives love their sites to have flash headers. It looks cool. It looks like marketing is doing something. The problem is, a flash header can hurt engagement and conversion more than it helps.

The Triple Threat of Flash

Flash banners are usually no more than cool images with “poser” slogans riding on top of them. They tend to focus on what’s good about the company and very little on solving the visitors’ problems.

Flash does draw the eye, and will be looked at by visitors. But, if the meat of your message is in the body of the page, this actually draws the reader away from the important stuff.

Tall flash banners also push your body content down, obscuring much of it below the fold.

This is the triple threat: irrelevance, distraction and obfuscation.

Proper Use of Flash

Flash is a great tool for communicating your message in seconds. It will appeal to short-attention-span visitors such as your Spontaneous and Competitive visitors. Images can reinforce brands quickly.

If you’re going to use flash on a page, it basically has to do the work of the whole page. This means you need to spend considerable time making sure that it will:

• Explain your value to the visitor efficiently and completely
• Provide a way to take action
• Support the brand image that the rest of the site presents

Flash that Works

I’ve seen few flash headers that do this well. TheTumri home pageis an exception. The motion in the flash presentation draws the eye. With just a few moments of watching, you get how their offering works at a high level. To the right of the “action” is a button enticing you to “Learn More.” This is a weak call to action, but at least it’s there. The flash presentation is tasteful and probably highlights products sold by Tumri’s target customers.

Yes, their flash header pushes down the content, but there’s not much there of value to visitors below, just brochure copy, self-promoting icons and news about the company. In short, if it wasn’t for the flash header, this page would be an engagement disaster.

It takes time to use Flash as the super-communicating tool it can be. Don’t use it for “effect” or “image building.” When you do, you unleash the triple threat that will make Flash work against you.

http://www.tumri.com/

The Magic Email for Freelancers and Job Seekers

It’s 130 words long, and can build your practice or get you more interviews

Email is the biggest social network on the planet. Even 80-year-olds have been on email long before giving Facebook a try. Because of this, it is the most effective tool for building a network that will connect you with the people that can give you work — whether you are a freelancer or a job seeker.

The problem is that email is a very personal medium. If we send unsolicited email, we feel we’re invading someone’s personal space. After all, we’ve all had spammers invade our space.

The Magic Email

The Magic Email gives you polite, respectful access to your email network. It contains the following components:

• It is specific about it’s purpose: to get permission to contact someone by email
• It states exactly what the recipient can expect from future emails
• It states specifically how the recipient can help
• It offers to reciprocate, making you a resource for them
• It tells the recipient how to remove themselves from your list

As a bonus, it should offer something of value; a link to something of broad interest.

The Magic Email creates an email network that has given you permission to contact them. It is through these contacts that you will win more freelance opportunities, and have your resume and cover letter delivered directly to hiring managers.

The Details of the Strategy

If you want to turn email into a work-generating network, listen to my presentation at Freelance Austin. Furthermore, Austin-based CardboardResume.com™ has sponsored a free copy of my book The Market for Me: Surviving Job Loss and Building Your Lifetime Career Network.

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The Job Song courtesy of Industrial Jazz Group via Music Alley.