Following on from the post about the different types of bloggers in 2010, if the strategic plan for your blog includes making money then at some point in time you will probably write a sales page to sell something or other.
If you are anything like me you will have read a sales page or two (or two hundred). Most go on for ever until you scroll down what must be more than a dozen pages if you were to print it out, before you finally get to the Buy Now button with the price. Well, times are a-changing.
If you are into testing the effectiveness of your sales copy (the story on your sales page that converts visits/readers to buyers), then you might be interested in a technique I read about just recently that can lead to improved sales conversions. You will want to try it out on one or more of your sales pages. The technique could best be summed up as ‘keep it simple’.
There is no product to buy or e-book to download, it just goes like this.
Some sales pages do surprisingly better with simply an image, half a dozen benefits listed as tick points, and then price and buy button, all at the top of the page. Essentially, all some people want is to know what you are selling, what it can do for them, how much, and then they buy. Long sales copy can be a real turn-off for some people and this shorter version, even if you add it to the top of your existing long sales copy, might bump your conversions up a percent or two.
So, there you have it. If you have a sales page that is converting, try rearranging the sales copy like described above. You could even duplicate some of the key benefits and title it “Summary of key benefits”. That way, for those who like to read long sales copy, they wont mind that they read the same thing twice because the first one was a summary. For an example of how this technique works, look at my Sales Page Magic sales page. Yes, it is a real sales page and yes it is a real product. If you have 5 minutes, check it out, but that is not the purpose of sending you there. It is an illustration of the above technique.
If you tweak your sales copy using the ‘keep it simple’ method above, would you please track the sales conversion before and after and see what difference it makes, then let me know below. I am trialling it on two pages. The Sales Page Magic page was tweaked using this technique just before I published this post. The other page I have tried it on has experienced increased conversions but I am still tracking the data to get some averages over time.
Related posts:
See, I love that type of sales page because it doesn’t just build hype, hype, hype.
If I’m going to buy a product, I want it to be short and sweet.
I know they all say to put in a huge story, testimonials, images, videos, badges and all that noise but if you can convey to me why I should pick up the product in less than a minute, my emotions will run high and I’ll follow through.
Great example and brings a lot of excellent ideas for when I put together some minisites and minilanding pages
Murlu´s last post..How To Edit Videos With Youtube Video Editor
When I first read about it I wondered why it had taken so long for someone to speak up about it. I had been so used to the long sales letter that I guess I was not thinking about any alternatives. One of the longest I have seen goes on for dozens of screens and would take close to an hour to read if you read it all.
Twitter: barry_wells
says:
Hi Michael, I have to agree. Your salespage layout is impressive, i hate those long winded ones and tend to scroll the page to the bullet points and the price.
I’m currently working on bonus items for my 1st product and adding the details to my salespage (which remains a work in progress). I really like your layout and will certainly put some thought into it.
Thanks for the heads up Michael.
Regards, Barry
PS. Adding pages to your blog is clever, never thought of using the blog URL as i’ve always used my eBook website one. But using the blog URL…. yes Michael i’m thinking now, thanks
Barry@The Newbies Guide´s last post..Part 10 of The Newbies Guide: Generating Traffic To Your Website
I haven’t spent enough time on it and there is no image yet but it will look even better soon. I encourage you to include an image as it helps bring the dot points and text to a point of focus, and just above the buy button (which is also missing at the moment – it is just a hyperlink).
This technique makes the sales page part of your blog contents. It is really neat. Sometimes a separate URL is appropriate but for the affiliate marketer just starting out, this method allows for the product name/keywords to be part of the URL string and the page to be fully customisable.
Hi Michael, this is the only type of sales page that I will buy from. As soon as I see that LONG sales page with all the “proof” in videos and paypal snapshots, I get put off immediately.
Speaking of the short sales pages, what do you think of implementing this into PPV marketing? A short part at the top that looks like your normal popup window, but with a difference, you can actually scroll down to read more. mmm…
James@Affiliate Marketing´s last post..Use Back End Affiliate Marketing To Boost Profits
James, I think the days are passing where the long sales page is the most successful type of ad copy. Many of the people who are coaching internet newbies will no doubt promote what worked for them one or more years ago. The new IM apprentices will copy what their mentor shows them and, for the most part, this is fine. However, times change and what worked last year will not always work the same next year.
It is a good idea for marketers/bloggers/webmasters to try new ideas and test different combinations of page elements to improve traffic and conversion rates.
You would have to have something like this on PPV as the nature of the PPV popup would tend to make people want to either close it or investigate further. WIthout a call to action “above the fold” I think you will be throwing away good money on PPV with a long sales spiel.
Makes sense, I thought of a sales page with a call to action at the top and then more action to the bottom. So if your PPV ad pops up it will look like your normal ad page with a call to action, bullet points, registration or buy now link and then more information if you want to scroll down.
I agree that the days of long sales pages are over, a serious online marketer who wants to spend money online does not want to read the same point over and over again.
Although, I spend some time with a friend that is in the process of writing a adventure book, and noticed that he has bought at least 4 of those “long sales page products” to market his book. Just goes to show that old techniques can still work. It might just be time to start selling the same products to a different target market.
James@Affiliate Marketing´s last post..Use Back End Affiliate Marketing To Boost Profits
For sure, every technique, regardless of its effectiveness, will experience some success. It might be useful to use a split test with Page A the long version and Page B the short version of the same sales script. After a month, check the figures and compare.
It would be neat to be able to collect some basic demographics as well. Data such gender, age, purchase intention, etc. to see if there is any correlation between that and the length of the sales page.
I bet that information would be real valuable for many people. Hmmmm, I am thinking of another product here…a research study into the type of sales page that appeals to specific audiences. It’s probably already been done
, but I’ve noted it in my “products that may be worth developing” notepad for later consideration.
I think that would be a great product. Imagine having a page that has 20 categories… 1. “How to sell to internet marketers” 2.”How to sell to writers” 3.”How to sell to stay at home mothers” and the list goes on. It could open a whole new door for internet marketing
Be sure to let me know when you try your split test. I have a similar project coming up soon.
James@Saventa Offers´s last post..Use Back End Affiliate Marketing To Boost Profits
It would cost a bit to start with but I am thinking that this could be done in a short time with an Adwords compaign comprising a few dozen ads written for specific audiences going through to random pages that offer something in return for collecting the demographic data.
After a few thousand clicks and at least 100 data points per sales/landing page, there should be enough data to draw valid conclusions. You would keep away from the competitive keywords for the most part so at less than 30 cents per click it would require an investment of at least $1000 for adwords, the cost of writing the ads and the landing pages.
Just goes to show how a little idea can turn into a big project, but it could help you in the future with spending less money on ads by converting more traffic into sales. I wonder if this information is not available somewhere already… Probably for $24.95 for the next 2 hours on a long sales page!
Twitter: Alexwhalley23
says:
Michael. I have been asking around and looking and trialling getting a sales page into my wordpress blog so that I can promote my email list and send organic traffic directly to it, this sales magic system that you found and affiliated yourself with is awesome, I am seriously considering purchasing it.
Can you shed some light on it? I assume you have purchased it since it appears as a sales page on your site? Can you give me the inside scoop and then prepare for an affiliate commission
Thanks for a great post about sales pages, I too agree that shorter is sweeter, but thank you even more for bringing this product to my attention.
I’m excited now !!
Alex@Keyword Blogger´s last post..How to Optimize your site with your Googles on
Hey Alex and thanks for stopping by. I have purchased it and you see it in action via the Sales Page Magic link. I made up that name when I was writing the sales page but it sort of sticks nicely.
If you purchase it through my affiliate link from that embedded page, I will send you a copy of the page code used to create that embedded SPM page. I found the product (it is a technique, not a physical product) lacked a bit of clarity in the instructions so by getting a copy of my sales page, together with the video help on offer after you purchase, you’ll be up and running in no time.
I also support everything I sell (my own products) as well as everything I promote (affiliate products) through the nine95 support desk. I sometimes cannot answer everything for an affiliate product but as I usually have bought it first and nutted it out, I can often add some value to the raw product if you run into any strife.
If you want the code for that page, submit a support ticket and I can attach the file in the response.
Michael.
“Long sales copy can be a real turn-off for some people and this shorter version, even if you add it to the top of your existing long sales copy, might bump your conversions up a percent or two.”
I couldn’t agree with this post more. KISS! When I see a cluttered and really long sales page I instantly hit the back button on my browser. ( I do this even faster is some cheap animated person starts talking to me out of nowhere) I’ve seen the long sales pages for years now and I can’t imagine them being at all effective in highly converting sales. You have less than 60 seconds to sell your customers so don’t waist their time with hype, get to the point and get the sale!
I give it 30 seconds. If I cannot see the major reason why I should spend more time on a site or buy something, I move on. It is different if I am checking out a product or service recommended by a friend but if it is a random page I found through some bloggers link or affiliate article it gets the evil eye and dreaded click of the back button once the half minute timer chimes.
Twitter: chattanoogaseo
says:
Personally, I’m a fan of the “get to the point” sales page. However, I’ve done a couple of studies that show that if the product is gimmicky or plays on emotions, the long wondering sales pitch works better. It just seems those kinds of buyers need to be reassured they are not getting screwed
donnie@Chattanooga TN´s last post..Project Update- R&D Website SEO Progress
Compare to other tool, I could say that this one is very helpful. Your site is really resourceful. Thanks for sharing.
This is a great tool I have to admit, basing on my friends experience they told me that the best sale page can be done in face-book that is all i know until i have read this post of yours.thanks for giving this brilliant info.
Kate Brown Wilson´s last post..הכנה לכיתה א