ConvertDesigning Web Sites to Increase Traffic and

Conversion

Outline

Put Benefits Before Features!

Emotion

Put Benefits Before Features

It is the benefit that grabs attention by connecting emotionally with emotionally.!

The feature should follow, creating a connection that the benefit is a consequence of the feature.!

Instead of listing benefits, evoke them emotionally by helping your visitors visualize how much easier their life will be.

Put Benefits Before Features

Same-day delivery!

You can relax, knowing your goods will arrive by 5pm.!

Long battery life!

Don’t worry if you have to jump on a last-minute flight. Our laptop battery will take you from London to New York — and back again.

Put Benefits Before Features

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Low prices (feature) become “With the $500 you’ll save by buying from us, you could take the family away on a surprise vacation.”Double-taped seams (feature) become “Whether you’re sailing offshore, trek-king to base camp, or watching your child’s soccer match, our double-taped seams ensure you stay warm and dry all day.”

Put Benefits Before FeaturesNotice how many items in the preceding list start with the benefit, and then associate the feature. It is the benefit that grabs my attention by connecting emotionally with my imagination. The feature should follow, creating a connection in my mind that the benefit is a consequence of the feature.This simple connection helps create desire for the product on offer. If a web user is comparing a few alternatives, she will assign more value to the one that offers her a personal vision, that the benefit will somehow enhance her life. Other products may have the exact same features, but unless they are served to her as emotive benefits, they will not seem as compelling.My home page design for an online bed store, as shown in Figure 7-11, leads with a reassuring promise “You can sleep well.” The headline is a simple, direct benefit, which has two meanings, suggesting you will get a good night’s sleep on our comfort-able beds, and also that you can rest easy because you can trust this vendor. There are no features in the headline, because the site has a wide range of products on offer. But this high-level benefit neatly applies to everything they sell.AddAction is a low-cost but high-quality hosting provider, competing in a tough market. In my preparatory interview, we explored what its existing clients love about the service.

FIGURE 7-11  Features never sold anything. This headline tells the customer the direct benefit to her, before explaining how it may be achieved through one of their range of products.

Emotion

People choose to buy based on emotion and then justify with logic.!

The buying decision is usually already made emotionally before logic comes into consideration.!

Love, fear, attraction, and hope trigger action in ways that ideas alone cannot.!

Features are in the realm of logic, but benefits touch us emotionally and are in the realm of emotion.

Emotion

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Emotion

An easy shortcut to emotional connection is to show visitors a picture of the goal they want to reach.

Emotion

Emotion

Fear can be a strong motivation emotion, but it is most effective when you can make the pain of the fear immediately present, and offer instant relief.!

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