Heat maps can teach you a lot about the effectiveness of your website at getting visitors to take action.
How would you like a free evaluation for your own site?
Landing Page Optimization
I’m a fan of Tim Ash and his company, SiteTuners.com, because their mission isn’t to build really pretty websites. Tim’s goal is to help create pages on the web that encourage people to interact with your brand and business in a concrete way. In other words, more clicks, not just looks.
You can generate a heat map just like I did be heading to Attention Wizard and creating a free account. Every free membership gives you one heat map analysis per day, but you can get unlimited analysis when you opt to buy a pro account. Take a screenshot of your website and visit Tim’s site now to see how your landing page ranks!
…and yes, I did take a peek at Social Media Commando! Here’s the results:
Notice the red and orange flares? Those are the activity ‘hot spots’ which indicate the highest concentration of appeal for the rods and cones inside your eyes.
Another helpful part of this heat map is that the points of highest attention are numbered, so you get a clear idea of where people look first when they land on your page. The results for this page reveal that the Facebook Fan Page widget get lots of attention, but not the email signup form in my header.
Not good! That’s going to require a fix.
Although I have to admit it’s tough balancing action oriented design vs. the look and feel of a site visitors have come to find familiar and cool. Still, I am a believer in effective landing page design, so a few changes are in order (I have updated JoeMescher.com to put the most attention on a signup form).
The bottom line is that landing page optimization is as much science as it is art, and if you’re ready to make the investment of time required to build a better user experience, check out one of Tim’s interviews from YouTube:
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Joe,
I would think that the lack of attention given to your email signup form has less to do with positioning more to do with the gravity of the facebook page widget. Social media is now the preferred method for communication between audience and brand and that if anything placing the widget within the blog header would cator to audience desires. After comparing the embedded screenshot to your blog, it looks as if you repositioned the facebook fan page widget closer to the top.
That’s a hell of a good point, John!
Makes sense that more people would opt to be included in the social network side, especially since the site is called ‘Social Media Commando’. One of my other thoughts is that becoming a Facebook Fan involves a single click, whereas an email signup demands more trust (opting in to provide your name and email).
Great point man, thanks for your perspective!
Hi Joe. I am consistently enjoying your site and your tweets. Here’s my question. Do you think it’s more important to have a stable of steady readers, or to have lots of readers coming in on specific google searches? I haven’t got a lot of subscribers, and I’m not sure how many people are regulars, or become regulars, but I do know that I get around 150+ people coming in from google or other searches every day. Some others come in from links from other sites. Some are just repeat, or regular fans.
I’m happy for all the readers, but in terms of sales? My online store isn’t doing that well. I’m trying to pump up the volume of readers, but it’s a slog. I think I’ve tripled readership in a year, so that’s not bad.
thanks. your neighbor on pine street. Liza
Ooooh! Good Question!
Short answer? Both casual and dedicated visitors are good.
Dedicated readers are more likely to share your content with friends and (a small percentage) may convert into customers.
However you do need casual visitors — and lots of them — if you hope to convert some of them into regular visitors and eventually partners in blogging or perhaps more to your stated goal –> customers.
There’s a few ways you can help promote your shop. I read your site and took a look at the header, sidebars and after the post message.
Your blog could do a more effective job of tooting your own horn, with more obvious links to your store. Maybe this is in the form of a YouTube video about your products — perhaps it is a discount offer that inspires people to navigate to the online shop (i.e. “Before You Forget…Here’s What You’ve Been Looking For”).
Further, there is an opportunity to remind people of these products and services — using both fun social tools and direct links — using some custom code in your after the post box.
In fact I’ve just updated my after the post box on JoeMescher.com. Here’s an example:
http://www.joemescher.com/2010/03/you-0/
(And check out the direct message on the homepage).
Maybe you can try some of these ideas out for yourself? If all else fails, what about showing people how to use your merchandise in a cool new way by use of video, i.e.:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50DLW7gWKdI
Cheers!