MarketingExperiments Blog: Research-driven optimization, testing, and marketing ideas

Affiliate marketers have it tough these days. So many affiliates are attracted by the promise of building a business without having to involve themselves in the details of actually filling orders. With a marketplace so saturated, it’s difficult to get any kind of ROI out of affiliate campaigns.

So, how can affiliate marketers increase their ROI?

The same way a merchant would increase its ROI: by providing enough perceived value to guide the prospects to, and through, the offer.

Of course, increasing ROI is always easier said than done. And because that’s part of the job of our research analysts, Adam Lapp, Associate Director of Optimization teaches an optimization training class every Thursday here at MECLABS. In it, Chris Rochester, one of our research analysts, developed a treatment homepage for affiliate website Safari.com as a thought exercise.

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Now, before I go any further and show you Chris’ treatment, it needs a heavy disclaimer. Because Safari.com was submitted by one of our Web clinic audience members, we didn’t have any actual metrics for the site. In other words, Chris may not have made the suggestions he did in the treatment had he seen the real data behind the site.

Fortunately, our Associate Director of Optimization, Adam Lapp, developed some example metrics Chris could work from. So here’s some imaginary background for you…

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The first week of a new job can fill a person with anxiety. I should know, as I recently finished my first week as MECLABS’s new Junior Copy Editor. Lucky for me, any concern was answered by just a quick question or click of the mouse. The proximity (a click or call away), specificity (resources like previous articles and a company Style Guide) and intensity (“reply all” gets answers from multiple people) of each answer eased my anxiety. Optimizing your landing page can do exactly the same for your website visitors.

One of the many things I did during my first week was complete the MECLABS Landing Page Optimization Online Certification Course. While I enjoyed all of the sessions, the section on anxiety most stood out.

Like many of you, I have left websites on which I didn’t feel safe entering my information. Sometimes, I could easily pinpoint my anxiety. But other times, even as a visitor, I didn’t know what specific factors left me with such concern. This session of the course helped quell my doubts, from both the customer and marketer points-of-view. Read more…

Until you are the best choice for your ideal customer, you do not deserve to exist in the marketplace.

That was just one of the interesting suppositions the students of Dr. Flint McGlaughlin heard this morning during the first day of the MarketingExperiments LPO workshop in Ponte Vedra Beach.

The context was the importance of value proposition.

“88% of all landing pages I see have a problem with the value proposition,” said Flint. “What you must answer for your customer is this: ‘If I am your ideal customer, why should I buy from you instead of from any of your competitors?’ … You must figure out why you are best and learn to communicate it effectively.”

The students I spoke with at the lunch break were certainly eager to get started on that effective communication, expressing a range of goals for attending the intensive training. Some hoped to take back “evidence” to a boss to show why a company’s landing pages should be changed, others were expanding their portfolio of professional certifications.

At least two students were shipped here by a marketing-savvy CEO.

Kacy McRae, a marketing communications specialist and graphic designer for Illinois-based B2B Pacific Bearing, and Dominick Doyle, the company webmaster, were sent to the conference by CEO Robert Schroeder, a long-time member of MarketingSherpa. McRae and Doyle confirmed their number one goal is to better manage Schroeder’s marketing dollars.

They certainly got his money’s worth for him today.

From how to design a channel map, through that great overview of the importance of identifying and expressing a value proposition, to the importance of reducing friction (but not completely), balancing it with incentive, and alleviating anxiety, Flint guided students through the “sequence of thought” required to achieve optimal conversion results for their companies, backing it all up with solid test results ranging from the 1,052% cumulative gain we achieved with the New York Times, to impressive lifts for lead generation, retail, and B2B sites.

I’m sure that most students who attended today will agree: The training they got was not only fast-paced, detailed, and useful, it was definitely thought-provoking. Here are a few of my other favorite “Flintisms” from today’s sessions:

• Optimization happens in the mind, not on the page.

• Adequacy is the enemy of excellence.

• Service is a threshold expectation.

• Clarity trumps persuasion.

Day two will encompass a review, then a comprehensive test. Those who manage to be at least 80% correct will come out on the other side with their certificate.

Good luck, you guys.