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We know that something like 80% of visitors will abandon our sites without finishing the headline. And we know that "What's in this for me?" is the question every visitor asks immediately. We know we must demonstrate there is something here that matters. And we must do so quickly. Within seconds.

Suppose you have worked at this. And suppose you have this right, or at least close. What next?

Show Them The Good Stuff

The next step is to quickly reveal what is available on the site and why each segment matters. There must be a promise of complete information, and this promise must be kept. A page of banners, by contrast, will never work.

The Contrary View In Place

For some time now I've wanted to get into a hobby-type thing to give my days a better balance. I tend to just keep working, unless I build in alternate fun things of some kind or another.

Then it hit me. I love growing stuff. But where I live, this means a greenhouse to keep out the gophers, rabbits and especially the deer. So I went surfing, something I seldom do.

Thoroughly excited with the idea, I fired up the computer, went to AltaVista, and entered, "hot house" + plants. Not the best starting place, but hey, I was seriously surfing for something I had never before tried to find on the Web. A glance at the first 10 listings showed I had the wrong key word. The fourth item caught my attention.

"Your #1 Stop for old fashion Cottage Plants, the once your Grandmother used to grwow."

An Odd Happening

I'm by nature a thoughtful, somewhat introspective fellow. So I was taken by surprise by the feelings that washed over me in looking at the above listing. "Who the heck is this joker? Two misused words in the site description that a spell checker can't find. Maybe "grwow" is a word, but I don't recognize it. Does this clown know anything? Am I really expected to click on this nonsense?"

Note the lack of reason in my response. Which was frustration that converted to anger so quickly I did not notice the change. "Who the heck are you, wasting my time like this?" I muttered out loud. And instead of thinking things over, which is my usual mode, I plunged on with an aggressive demanding attitude I don't recall ever having before.

Next Stop: Greenhouse

Mostly greenhouse effects regards the planet. Of no interest at all. (Well, sure. Critical stuff. But not just then.) So I tried greenhouses (plural). Better. So AltaVista sees the plural as different from the singular. I decided to try to remember that, but knew I wouldn't.

A furious scan of descriptions followed. I clicked on those that seemed promising. On every third one I hit the back button, for the site didn't seem to want to load.

Site after site was lovely. Virtually all were catalog operations. Lots of pictures with options for bigger ones. And lots of "Add To Cart" buttons. But little information about much of anything. I'm going to spend $500 to $5000 based on a picture? Has everybody lost their mind?

Shutting Down

I was surprised when I glanced at the clock. I had "visited" over 50 sites in less than 45 minutes. This may be the essence of surfing to many. Frankly, it's the first time I recall "attacking" a topic in such fashion.

Some sites offered gardening tips. None appeared to feature great content or solid information that would help me make a practical decision. I saw no mention of the need for heating and cooling. I guess these ups and extras are meant to come as a surprise. And I did not find mention of how well their stuff can handle two feet of snow, which I get routinely here in the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas.

One home page after another was simply pictures with a brief catalog description and a click-to-order button. They shouted things at me like "Buy From Me Now!" Or worse: "Please Buy From Me."

Calming Down

I poured a cup of coffee, sat down to gaze at the mountains to the East, and pondered for a bit. Still kind of surprised at the way in which I had attacked this task. Puzzled at the emotional change that took over completely. I asked myself what is wrong with these sites? What would I do differently were they mine? What could they have done to grab my attention and hold it?

What I Discovered

The pictures did in fact partially answer the question, "What's in it for me?" I was looking at greenhouses. But there was nothing that drew me beyond this point. One person boldly commented, "I've been in this business since 1949." How nice. Of no meaning to me at all. (Later, yes, when I want to see who's behind this operation, but never up front.) Another said something like, "We are the best." Uh huh. Always a dumb thing to say. Show me, else shush.

Looking Back

I'm sure that several of the sites I dashed through have the information I want. But it wasn't obvious at the time. And it must be immediately and completely obvious. Why? Because I suspect my recent surfing experience is common behavior among many.

If you can get a visitor to finish your headline, you've beat the odds significantly. If the headline even partially answers the question, "What's in this for me?" you are still in the game.

However, you will lose your visitor at this point, unless you immediately demonstrate why your visitor should linger. Questions such as "Why should I buy from you?" and "Why should I believe you?" need to be addressed quickly. While it's not possible to answer all such questions in the first screen, you best get started and definitively point the way to further information that provides complete answers.

Looking Ahead

The Web is so new, it's difficult to envision what lies ahead. Entire new business models are likely to emerge, concepts we have not yet dreamed of. One thing seems certain, though. The catalog model is here to stay.

However, few catalog sites are going to be successful opening with some pictures, brief descriptions, and an "order now" button.

An Aside

Another mistake noted on sites visited was what appeared to be a determination to make the page look like printed offline catalogs. Pages jammed full of pictures. Brief hard-to-read descriptions. Lots of unexplained jargon.

Offline, this is mandatory. Printing costs mount up. And so do mailing costs. Even the cost of paper. Online, there is virtually no cost to adding another page to the site. Put links on jargon that pop up a window of explanation. Use space; it's cheap. Include more complete explanations with links to more in depth notes.

While the catalog model will thrive on the Web, more attractive formats that make it easy to find further information will be the winners.

Demonstrate Your Concerns For Your Customers

Saying you're glad a visitor dropped in won't do a bit of good. Showing them it's so will. Show them you value their interest and will go out of your way to provide exactly what they need.

Saying you support your customers in every possible way won't cut it. But showing that it's so does wonders.

Begin demonstrating such essential elements in the first screen on your page and reenforce each element throughout the site. And whatever else you do, make certain that all the neat resources on your site are readily available.

About the author:
Bob McElwain Want to build a winning site? Improve one you already have? Fix one that's busted? Get ANSWERS. Subscribe to "STAT News" now! mailto:join-stat@lyris.dundee.net Web marketing and consulting since 1993 Site: <http://sitetipsandtricks.com> Phone: 209-742-6349