Are your Visitors Playing Whack-a-Mole on your Website?
We have all played Whack-a-Mole in an arcade at one point in our life! Its the game where you grab this big mallet and stand in front of a machine that has moles popping up out of random holes in the surface. When the Mole appears, you smack that little bugger on the head and score a point! You win by scoring the most points of course… What if you knew every hole the critter was going to pop from, BEFORE it sprung its head… EVERY time? Obviously, you would win every time!
Ask yourself… do your visitors have to play the same game when they visit your websites? Are they constantly trying to figure out where their next move may be, or do you guide them in a clear and direct path to your offer pages?
Walk Yourself through a Quick Usability Test
This is actually a very quick and easy thing for you to do on your own site(s).
- Pick a Search Term you know your site ranks with, and find yourself in a search engine.
- Click the link and follow it to your site as if you were a random visitor, looking for info or to possibly buy whatever it was you searched for.
- Within 1-2 clicks of your mouse – buy what you were looking for! (Not really, but you know what I mean)
If you cannot do this… you need to work on funneling your traffic better!
The bottom line with search traffic, is that yours is just one of many thousands of websites claiming to have what the user is looking for. If that user cannot find EXACTLY what they wanted on either the page they landed, or within 1-2 clicks of their mouse, they are likely going elsewhere!
Keep in mind that unlike a retail store with only one entrance, EVERY page of your website has its own entrance and exit, and should be thought of as its own store! Everything you need to sell that specific product, should be on that specific page, or less than 1 click away and very obviously linked from that page with a few links, maybe a high contrast banner, etc!
Visualize the Sales Process on your Site
Back in the day, I managed a retail store for a fortune 100 electronics company! We put SO MUCH focus on the flow of the traffic and delivering the exact solution for every person that walked through the door, that we were able to achieve high sales volume by perfecting the process! In the retail world it’s alot easier since everyone comes in through the exact same door and you have the chance to present features, explain the functionality and benefits, overcome objections by answering questions, and finally… asking for the sale!
Your website should do the same thing… on every page remotely related to your offer!
Features – Functions – Benefits – Questions – Ask for the Sale!
FFBQ is the exact acronym we used to use for it! Features, Functions, Benefits and Questions. Once those 4 basic principles of the sales process were completed, there was only 1 thing left to do… Ask for the Sale! Try this on the next page you create for your site…
- Choose an EXACT Product to Promote – This is your Offer!
- Write out the Features of that specific product!
- Explain the Functions and Benefits of using that product!
- Write a series of Questions AND Answers about the product!
- ASK FOR THE SALE
Here is a good sample page, in less than 300 words!
MGW Road Racing Short Throw Shifter for Mustangs (Page Title – H1 tag)
If you enjoy a little red-light racing every now and again, you know that the launch and the shift from first to second gear will either make you smile, or cause you to hide your face at the next light! Designed with Road Racers in mind, MGW Short Throw Mustang shifters will make you look like a pro the next time you pull up next to a hot import at the red light!
MGW Mustang Shifter Features (This would be an H2 tag)
- Shortest throw Mustang Shifter in its class!
- Quietest Shifter on the market!
- Strong Centering Springs to assure fast 2nd – 3rd gear shifting!
- Fully Adjustable Shifter Stops!
- Attractive design compliments ANY Mustang!
- Easy installation, requiring no factory transmission modifications!
Benefits of an MGW Shifter (Again, H2, Functions and Benefits in same paragraph)
After you have an MGW Short Throw shifter in your hands, those all important shifts are fast, accurate and effortless! From the first time you touch your new shifter, you can immediately tell the sloppy and soft feel of the stock mustang shifter is gone and replaced with a solid and tight shift pattern that will get you through the gears, without even having to think about it! MGW shifters are made from aircraft grade aluminum and exceed grade 8 hardness standards! These shifters will never break off in your hand!
Available for all years of Mustang from 1982 – today’s newest models, MGW has the right shifter for your car!
Common Questions About MGW Mustang Shifters (again, H2)
Q: Can I install it Myself?
A: MGW shifters include all hardware and detailed instructions for installing your shifter. Most handy mechanics can install them in the garage of backyard!
Q: How long does the Install take?
A: In most cases, the install can be completed in less than 2 hours
Q: Will my Stock shifter ball fit onto the shifter?
A: Yes, there are two different thread patterns available. Specify the one you need when you buy it.
Q: How Much do MGW Shifters Cost?
A: Prices range from $150-$300 for MGW Shifters.
Buy your MGW Shifter Today (H2, Asking for the Sale, and showing your banner or ebay listings, etc.!)
Incidentally, if any of you out there own a Mustang and want to drop in an MGW, they can be found linked to that banner. I am not affiliated with them, but I have installed my own, and used MGW shifters for about 7-8 years in the last two cars I have owned! Worth every penny…
How did Your Website Check out?
Could you make a Purchase on the same page, or did you have to search around to find what you needed?
I recently made a significant change on a WordPress /BANS site of my own. The site is more than 2 years old and has had a blog front end for over 1 year. 2 weeks ago, I 301 redirected the main page directly to the BANS side of the site. While pageviews have dropped from 5+ pages per visitor, to less than 3… Click through jumped by more than 300% and sales have more than doubled! (Don’t know what effect this will have on quality score yet though)
I am not running out and dumping WordPress from the site at all… but I am rewriting almost every post, and funneling my traffic directly to the offer pages!
Previously Published Articles You May Like to Read:
- My Confession – I am going to Build a Website for Visitors!
- ePN and HostGator not Playing Well Today!
- Understanding the Needs of your Visitors by the Logfiles
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I have been doing my part to "Build the Internet" since 1994, when I built my first website! Since then, I have built hundreds of niche websites for myself and many others, focused on design, applications, ecommerce, search optimization and internet marketing.
Mark,
Outstanding post. I like your thought process when you say “EVERY page of your website has its own entrance and exit, and should be thought of as its own store!”.
Very motivating, and excellent way of approaching page optimization. I like the Q and A stuff too. Good for more content. Any suggestions on where to find some q and a starters for products? Where to look?
Thanks again.
@ Jeff –
Thanks man! I usually just use the manufacturers OWN information, put it into my own words, and let it fly!
I wish I could say I have used this method 100% of the time… but writing content is like an evolutionary process. You write in several different ways, then see which convert the best.
Take those with the highest conversion, and replicate it!
M
Mark….that has been my experience as well. I like a static “like” front page with simple navigation. I also try to make it a point to have auctions available at the bottom of ANY post I make.
I think the “content” craze has led people to believe that all content is good content as long as it’s original.
I disagree. Garbage is garbage and will bounce someone right back out if it is not relevant or good enough to convert.
Great advice for anyone building a website. I know from my own personal experience that when I visit a website and can’t find what I’m looking for quickly, I just leave.
This is a test I will need to run on all my niche websites. Thanks
Mark, you laid it out perfect! You da man! I always enjoy your posts…. always on spot man with what we need!
thanks!
@ Mark about H1, H2 etc…
Mark, i just thought about something that others might not realize.. and i also have a question about.. I think you emailed me about his but i can’t find the email..
On “some” of my WP themes, WP automatically make the actually blog title an H1 -
For instance, on my blog, the blog name.. “My Life as I See It” is an H1 if i view the source
Soooo, when i do a post, i have been making the “post title” an H2 instead of an H1 and any paragraph titles within that post H3 and so on..
Am i correct in doing this or should i not even recognize the title of the blog being H1 and go ahead with the post title as an H1 as well?
Thanks!
@ Jake –
I have personally used the blog title both ways… as an H1 and as an H2, leaving the H1 available for the post title.
On this site, I don’t even have the title as ANY head tag at all, it is just a link in the header, and each post contains the H1.
H1 SHOULD be the be-all end-all on single pages, however… if it is your blog title, it is deprecated, due to be identical on EVERY page of the site.
Google and other engines KNOW each section of your site that is just repeat information for navigation, titles, etc… and they focus on the unique identifiers of the individual pages for relevance.
Its my understanding that if your blog title is an H1 – it will not reduce the value of the H1, if you use it for the post title. On the same hand… an H2 for the title is fine as well.
The BEST solution would be to have your blog title as an H1 on your HOME PAGE ONLY. On your post and pages, the title of that specific page would be the H1.
M
Great info! Thanks!
Mark – man this post reminds me of your old school (well not that old) posts I fell in love with when I first started discovering the online game…
I can’t apply this exercise to my personal blog because there has never been an intention of making money from it, but I can definitely see this exercise being super useful for each new affiliate site that I set up – whether it be review style, or a more in depth site funneling internally.
Simple guidelines. To the point. And effective.
This is what I love to read!
I’ve got it bookmarked man!
Thanks for the FFBQA method. Gonna print it out and stick it close to my monitor, really helpful, thanks !
Bookamrked it.
Cheers,
The Moneyac
@ Elijah –
Thanks man… I have been overwhelmed with too much work – I am getting pretty deep into the flipping world lately, and trying to write an ebook at the same time.
A few months ago, I decided not to write posts… just to have something to post. I see that all too often lately and dont want to fall into the trap (I already did a few times)
@ MoneyAC
Its a great method for writing and selling. I have to remind MYSELF to use it every day as I re-read my content before posting.
Mark
Damn I need to funnel my traffic better
Although, I do have many links to affiliate pages within some of my posts that convert quite OK
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