Perfectly Easy Websites: Case Study

“… small business owners and SOHOs who are either just starting a business or who do not yet have a website because they feel too overwhelmed/scared about the process.”

Absolutely the right audience for this service. Startups may see the value in having a site created for them, but better still, small business owners—about half of whom still don’t have a website, and most of those are vastly underperforming sites—have the money, can understand the value at this level (and may not at the higher price points of many traditional designers), and for that customer, “easy” is a powerful word, perhaps as powerful as “cheap” for many other customers. Small business owners know you can’t get something for nothing, and many are (finally!) worried about letting the ‘net pass them by.

Usability is very good. I had no problem getting around the site. I originally combed through the pages in the order you present them, but as I went back to look from a prospect’s eye, I was able to see several paths through the information which always led me to contacting you at some stage. I don’t think that a savvy prospect can become disoriented or be “left hanging,” feeling like they want to work with you but don’t know how to proceed. That may seems basic but it happens often, so bravo.

It may put off some prospects that they can’t say “yes” right away, but can only choose the intermediate step of opening a dialogue with you. “Buy now” buttons won’t appeal to everyone, but for the customer who’s come to his or her realization that they need what you offer before they got to your site, and who thinks Perfectly Easy Websites is perfect, it might be good to have a more committed step available to them right away before their ardor cools.

Your friendly, accessible copy is working well for you. Though some testers still felt there was too much jargon (“CMS—DMX—ASP?” said one), in general you’ve really done a great job living up to the promise of “easy.” The repetition of your “three things we need from you” on several pages helps the message of easy to sink in.

What you need to get this site selling, is to hold the prospective buyer’s attention. That’s the biggest issue with the site. The site needs more excitement and more urgency, like a smile and some guidance from a salesman who’s already got his friendly voice.

Three user tests were conducted…. Each [tester] was instructed to imagine they were in the market for your service and had the money available to make the purchase, then to behave as naturally as possible, clicking and reading at their own pace and in whatever order made sense to them in order to reach a decision. They were not told what the site offered, which helps to determine how long it is before they know what they can purchase from you.

They were to narrate what they were doing and thinking, and why, throughout their tests of the site.

Overall impressions of the site were good. Users commented “clean,” “easy-to-read,” and about the name and concept, “oh, cool”….

Though every user liked the hook of “easy,” User #2 was immediately so put off [by content in the sidebar] that if it had not been a test he said he would not have continued. “I’m already excluded,” he said, “… I feel as though only New York City office-types should keep reading”…. When the other users had finished testing the site they both stated that they hadn’t noticed the sidebar info at all. This was also true of the footer. Only one user saw the footer at all, on the fourth page visited, and was sure there hadn’t been a footer on the other pages. “Footer blindness” is even worse than “banner blindness,” and is the reason that no essential information should reside there alone….

All of the users wanted a more graphic presentation for Perfectly Easy Websites. “Subheads would help,” said one. “It’s a little too clean. I’d like some pictures or buttons to help me decide,” said another. “If it’s so easy, I want ‘start here—go here go here—you’re done’ right up front, to help me decide what to do,” said the third. The comment that really got to the point was, “I hate to say this—more buttons, more flash, more gimmicks. Or I might run away.” This meshes with my own impressions of the site. More visual cues are needed to hold the reader’s interest.

—Make what you do concrete to your reader…. What you want to hear a prospective client saying as they click around is “That would be good for me… Oh, that looks like me… Can he do that?” Break it down and make them see themselves profiting by working with you.

—Create more graphic interest to draw readers in and hold their attention. Use subheads, bold phrases, closeups of your work, and graphic elements to create a sense of relevance and urgency. You want your reader to be compelled to become a buyer as they read….

—Consider simplifying the language even further, adding secondary defining phrases to remove uncertainty about jargon from a buyer’s mind. “What does this mean” was echoed many times over the course of the user testing….

—Keep “easy,” which is an excellent emotional driver, at the forefront of any edits you do. In addition to comments like “Oh, I don’t have to do much, that’s nice,” we noted that “How Easy Is ‘Easy’” was the first or second click after the home page for every tester. There’s no doubt that’s a compelling concept. Don’t only emphasize the word, but demonstrate it, with easier-to-read copy and easy-to-follow cues. Improve the copy to drive the reader to “Yes” in as few clicks… as possible.