Why do customers shop online?
The answer is the convenience of easy search
and comparison shopping. We know from studies
that site user friendliness (aka usability)
is more important than price so once we have
built a user friendly site, how can we control
user behavior to our advantage? Build an information
resource which will end their search/research
and close the sale!
Keep a couple of things
in mind.
Your web page is just as
big in your viewer’s eyes as your competitors.
Your product information
can be just as clear, your photos just as
good.
What is it that people
need to make a purchase on the web site (or
phone?)
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Credibility and comfort level.
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Need for the product, perceived or not.
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Sufficient information to make a decision
-
Consensus or management approval unless
they are individuals.
Let us address point 3
“Sufficient information” and indirectly 1
and 4.
Several years ago I was
involved in the launch of a complex software
tool designed to compete with Lotus, IBM,
and several other nationally known brands.
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We knew that the research phase was complex
and essential for our prospective clients
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We knew during this search, our pages
could easily get lost in the many page
views, many links and sophisticated pitches
of our competitors.
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We knew that often people would start
at Google (or alternatives) and use that
as the home base to review other products.
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We had to stop that behavior and become
the “home base”.
Our
Solution.
It was scary, but we believed
in our product, its benefits and its competitive
position. We understood how people searched
and we decided that we needed to build a “competitive
matrix”. A competitive matrix is a
table showing all the important features,
contact information, reviews, price information
and links to your site and your competitors.
We believed that as soon
as the searchers found this matrix page, it
would become the home base for the
research. With this information at hand, they
could soon honestly tell their managers (or
co-decision makers) that they had thoroughly
researched the products, (an essential element
in B2B decisions).
We needed to appear objective
and demonstrate this. The table format and
information needed to bear this out and reinforce
our integrity and objectivity. One way we
did this was to contact the sales manager
of each competitor and give them free rein
to provide a comment for our matrix. We made
this clear on our site to demonstrate our
objectivity. Anyone who declined to comment
was designated as such with a “declined to
comment” statement. This clearly weakened
their position in the eyes of the searcher.
We agreed (and noted on the site) that we
would be happy to modify their statements
at any time.
What
were the benefits of this approach?
We controlled the landing
pages of our searchers. Instead of progressing
thru fancy intro pages, they went directly
to the less interesting and “brand building”
product page which we chose. They had no
back button capabilities to look at other
pages in the competitors sites. Meanwhile,
we were able to clearly demonstrate our competitive
benefits from within our site and links. We
maintained the back button option. If the
competitors failed to offer navigation and
product info on their pages, it was not our
fault. Big wins for us
The benefit of the “sales
funnel” or persuasive architecture that was
built into other sites was lost because we
controlled their entry points.
We appeared to be the fair
arbiters as well as players on an equal footing
to our competitors despite the fact that we
were often a tiny fraction of their size.
We controlled the "criteria
for comparison". Granted we had to be
fair and open or we risked losing the essential
credibility BUT there was plenty of room to
make ourselves look good with product features
we could emphasize.
Our traffic logs showed
the ISP’s of who used this page.
Our traffic logs showed
that a great many came back again and again
and referred others within their companies
to look at our page first. What a huge win
for a small player like us.
We became the “research
home page” and the frequent recipient
of back button clicks.
We were at the
top of the list on the matrix.
The further they got down
the list, the quicker they came back to our
site when they left. This was important behavior
to note. While it was important to choose
a way to “objectively” list the competitors,
you can choose from several: price, alpha
by product or company, size, and years in
the business, etc. If you choose other then
alphabetically, you must note how companies
were listed to maintain objectivity.
We controlled the list
of competitors. Of course objectivity was
key but nevertheless we were able to position
and control the layout and choose who we wanted.
We included a feedback option for people to
suggest other competitors. Another Big Win.
So
what happened?
We generated a great deal
of interest and were strongly convinced by
phone calls and results that we had been
able to stop their search, deliver the
information they needed and advance our position
dramatically.
It was a scary approach
but, one that exploited our understanding
about web behaviors to our advantage.
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We knew the search would take place.
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We knew we had to be seen as “equals”
to our competitors.
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We knew that information was key and
that we could very easily get lost in
the typical search process.
After all, how often do
you do your product research; forget where
you were or what you saw early in the process.
You stop when you have the feeling that you
have done your due diligence and find something
suitable. Imagine how confident and clear
your decision would have been had you had
a competitive matrix.
The likelihood of feeling
good about the matrix provider, feeling that
they had reason to be confident about
their product and that they deserved your
business is far greater when you control the
search. So stop your clients searching,
use the back button to advantage, stand up
strongly for your product and use the web
to your advantage! The web is all about information,
be sure you provide it in a way you can control
as much as possible.
For more information on
how we can help improve usability and improve
conversion rates see Conversion
Rate Improvement, Usability & Web Analytics
or contact us.
