MarketingExperiments.com Web Clinic Podcasts

Special Clinic: Optimizing eCommerce Websites (LIVE)

Thu, 8 May 2008 11:33:01 -0400

Presenters:
- Dr. Flint McGlaughlin, Director, MarketingExperiments
- Jimmy Ellis, Director of Optimization Research
- Aaron Rosenthal, Director of Channels Research

Here's your chance to experience our optimization experts in
action, breaking down what is - and isn't - working on
eCommerce sites.

Measuring What Matters: How simplifying your metrics can increase Marketing ROI by up to 75%

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 11:17:19 -0400

Today, ROI is everything - especially in a slumping economy. Are your current metrics giving you the full story?

Probably not. MarketingExperiments estimates that up to 75% of the data Web marketers collect is either misleading or inaccurate.

Finding the Ideal Incentive: How We Increased Email Capture by 319%

Thu, 3 Apr 2008 12:18:27 -0400

The right incentive can make a significant impact on response rates, whether it’s used to build lists and generate leads or increase online sales.

But how do you determine which incentive will work best to overcome friction and deliver maximum return?

And which common errors should you avoid?

Improving Conversion by 162% - How to Overcome Value Inhibitors

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 15:55:19 -0400

Which specific optimization steps have been shown to increase conversions by reducing Friction and alleviating Anxiety?

Optimizing Your Landing Pages Part 2

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 17:21:07 -0500

The MarketingExperiments team conducts live optimization on Landing Pages sent in by our subscribers.

Optimizing Your Landing Pages Part 1

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 17:13:40 -0500

The MarketingExperiments team conducts live optimization on Landing Pages sent in by our subscribers.

Landing Page Optimization: Finding Ideal Price Points

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 11:34:17 -0500

How do you know when it's better to raise prices to increase
revenue, or reduce prices and pump up your Conversion Rate?

In this clinic we will review the results of recent testing on
price elasticity of demand, and what they revealed about
optimizing prices and increasing total revenue.

2008 Internet Marketing Strategy: Are You Prepared?

Thu, 10 Jan 2008 14:58:52 -0500

Get ready for the greatest Internet marketing year yet.

Join us on January 9th to hear what MarketingExperiments scientists thought were the big ideas of 2007 and their observations, predictions, and recommendations for growing demand for your products in the coming year.

What can we learn from the biggest winners of 2007 as we finalize plans and budgets for 2008?

Marketer’s Intuition Revisited: Is There a Place for Intuition in Web Page Optimization?

Thu, 6 Dec 2007 17:59:14 -0500

Previous MarketingExperiments surveys showed intuition was unreliable when it came to predicting the best page performance, the best headline, the best copy in the test cases we studied: Our survey-takers were wrong at least 50% of the time.

But the very nature of optimization includes an element of intuition. How can it be honed to its maximum reliability? Should we ever trust it?

You’re invited to use your intuition at our next Web clinic to assess examples of Web page optimization. Test yourself against the test results. You may be surprised, or not!

Landing Page Optimization: Increasing Conversion by 150% and Lead Gen by 2,379% with an Effective Call-to-Action

Thu, 8 Nov 2007 12:05:31 -0500

Which changes will produce the best Conversion results when optimizing a Call-to-Action? Can distinct approaches be combined to increase both sales and leads?

Previous test results have shown that one particular change is typically a trade-off: It has a negative impact on direct Conversion but increases overall Conversion.

In this clinic we'll look at a case study in which changes to a Call-to-Action increased direct Conversion by 150% and Lead Generation by 5,722%.

Landing Page Optimization: Improving Conversion 50-60% by Applying Continuity and Congruence

Fri, 26 Oct 2007 09:05:10 -0400

Are customers getting what they expect when they reach your Landing Page, or are they receiving mixed or incomplete messages that disrupt the effective expression of Value Proposition and hurt Conversion?

After our recent clinic on Site Flow Disruption we received many requests for more information on the relationship of Continuity and Congruence and the clear communication of Value Proposition.

This brief reviews two recent case studies where improving Continuity and Congruence significantly improved Conversion for our partners.

Marketing Experiments Webinar: A Clinical Assessment of Your Landing Pages

Thu, 11 Oct 2007 13:24:25 -0400

Landing Pages submitted by online businesses were selected for a real-time assessment by the Marketing Experiments team.

Marketing experts Dr. Flint McGlaughlin, Jimmy Ellis and Aaron Rosenthal analyzed each page, identifying areas where applying key concepts of Landing Page Optimization could result in significant improvements in page performance for these businesses.

Lead Generation: Is Your Sign-Up Process Costing You Leads and Conversions, or Maximizing Them?

Wed, 3 Oct 2007 11:40:13 -0400

Are you missing sales by chasing after conversions instead of generating leads? Is your website out of synch with your business model?

Getting prospective customers to land on your pages is just the beginning. You have to capture leads before you can develop a relationship.

In this clinic, we will look at the results of recent optimization testing and what they showed us about improving lead generation, and therefore conversion.

Landing Page Optimization: How Businesses Achieve Breakthrough Conversion by Synchronizing Value Proposition and Page Design

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 08:49:45 -0400

Professional marketers have long known the importance of knowing and being able to convey the Unique Value Proposition for their company or organization. Many will spend weeks and months tuning and refining their "UVP" statements. And it IS truly essential that you have, and can concisely state a unique and compelling value proposition.

However, effectively expressing your value proposition through your website involves more than just the words you use. Every aspect of your site is communicating your value proposition and conflicting messages may be hurting your conversion. Marketers must understand how to protect their landing pages against the #1 threat to conversion: SITE FLOW DISRUPTION.

In this clinic we will reveal how the two dangerous forms of disruption - Discontinuity and Incongruence - can keep customers from responding to your value proposition.

Landing Page Conversion: Getting Significant Improvements Even When You Can’t Complete Your Tests

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 16:35:42 -0400

What do you do with a test when conversion rates don't validate?

We have all probably designed a test webpage or offer email that we expected to dramatically outperform the control and been stunned when performance was poor, or the results came back inconclusive.

Optimization Testing Tested: Validity Threats - Beyond Sample Size

Fri, 3 Aug 2007 11:59:04 -0400

Through online optimization testing, we strive to discover which webpage or email message will perform best by trying each version with a random sample of target prospects.We decide during test design how much difference we must see to warrant making a change, and what level of confidence we need to consider the data "valid" using statistical methods.

But is sample size the only factor that should be considered when assessing the validity of our test results? In this clinic, we will identify the four greatest threats to test validity, and look at some case studies that reveal the dangers of relying on a "statistically valid" sample alone.

PPC Advertising Tested: The Relevance of Relevance

Wed, 18 Jul 2007 16:33:53 -0400

Anyone who has set up or managed a paid search campaign can testify that there is an element of art involved in realizing the full potential of every advertising dollar. Part of mastering this art form is understanding the nature and role of relevance in paid search, and more importantly learning how you can use this understanding to improve the performance of your paid search campaigns.

In this clinic, we will look at several case studies that reveal the underlying principles of PPC relevance as they pertain to keywords, ad copy, click-through-rate, and conversion.

Landing Page Optimization Tested: Creating Effective Incentives -The Science of the Art

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 16:20:05 -0400

We are all familiar with the concept of using incentives, such as product discounts, free gifts or free shipping, to boost sales. However, rarely have we done the kind of research that allows us to think through the true principles and the mathematics of developing highly effective incentives - that is, ones that result in the maximum profit at the end of the day.

In this clinic, we combine foundational marketing and business principles with recent research findings to explore a simple but effective way to track down your "ideal incentive" using the two key criteria of Perceived Value Differential and Return on Incentive.

Landing Page Optimization Tested: Big Conversion Gains from a Little Scissors & Grease?

Thu, 7 Jun 2007 15:17:47 -0400

When prospective customers arrive at a website, they come with a specific intention or motivation. They may have come simply to browse or out of curiosity or by mistake. However, many come with the intention of making a purchase. For those prospects, it is the efficacy of the website’s purchase funnel--the pages that make up the buying process--that determine whether the visitor becomes a customer or merely a statistic.

Among the factors that influence the probability of conversion, an element we have called "friction" is key for us as marketers. The reason is that, unlike Motivation or the product factors of Value Proposition, Friction is something that we can significantly influence with comparatively little energy or cost; and the conversion gains we receive can be disproportionately high compared with the level of investment.

Harnessing Social Media: How to assess the value of Social Media Optimization (SMO) opportunities and use them to create a successful and cost effective marketing strategy.

Thu, 24 May 2007 12:22:10 -0400

As marketers we simply can’t afford to ignore growing social media marketing opportunities. While social media is never a total marketing solution, this niche area of marketing comes with a new set of theories, tactics and methodologies that every marketer should be aware of.

For the past 12 months, we have used video sites, blogs, social networks and discussion forums to drive targeted traffic to five different sites. This clinic will cover how researchers drove 165,204 page views and spent only 1.7 cents per click driving traffic using social media optimization. It will also help marketers consider the role and use of social media optimization in their strategic marketing plans.

Landing Pages Tested: How does having more than one objective to a page affect its performance?

Thu, 10 May 2007 16:10:29 -0400

Which will perform better, a landing page that has one clear objective or one that has multiple objectives?

As marketers, we are continually faced with the dilemma of determining what to show customer prospects when they arrive at our sites.

Should we present them with just one offer or option, or give them several and let them choose? What if I have what they want, but fail to show it? Do customer options and distracting page elements cause confusion?

In this brief, we use recent research with real-world companies to illustrate 5 fundamental principles of landing page clarity that you should use to maximize conversion.

Landing Page Optimization Tested: How to Create a "Sticky" Landing Page

Thu, 26 Apr 2007 11:53:03 -0400

In this clinic we identify the essential elements of website conversion and use them to design "sticky" landing pages that maximize clickthrough to your order process

Email Marketing Optimized, Part 2

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 11:37:44 -0400

In this clinic we will study the factors that determine the efficacy of online marketing Email copy at generating clicks and sales.

During the Live Clinic, Dr. McGlaughlin shares the findings of MEC's research on Email copy effectiveness and illustrates the principles of effective Email copy writing to optimize actual messages submitted by MEC Journal members.

Email Marketing Optimized

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 11:37:44 -0400

How Matching Ad Design to Context Improved Conversion by 127%

Thu, 15 Mar 2007 11:37:44 -0400

Content advertising has become a staple of online paid advertising. In fact, presuming Google AdSense is reflective of the marketplace, of the more than $6.7B spent on search-related online advertising in 2006 according to March, 2007 IAB figures, about 37% or $2.5B will go to content ads. Does whether a content ad or offer link stands out from or blends into the host site's native content make a difference in its performance? New Marketing Experiments research suggests that the answer is...

How To Increase Conversion by Reducing the Technology Barrier

Thu, 1 Mar 2007 11:37:44 -0400

The architecture we use to manage our business may not be the same structure we should use to market it. Our business is to serve our customers, make it easy for them to get what they want, and create an image of class and competence that elicits goodwill.

Site design tested: 7 ways to increase site conversion by reducing Customer Anxiety

Thu, 25 Jan 2007 11:37:44 -0400

In this brief we will look at how customer anxiety level, based upon the appearance of your landing page, will influence buyers' perceptions about you, and how these impressions translate into purchase decisions.

We will also provide 7 essential ways to reduce anxiety and improve site conversion.

Can Viral Videos Drive Targeted Traffic To Your Web Site?

Wed, 1 Nov 2006 10:26:46 -0400

There are millions of short video clips on the web, produced both by professionals and amateurs.

Tens of millions of people watch these short videos, but how effective are they at driving qualified traffic to web sites?

Using YouTube and Google Video we published some short videos, measured the number of times they were viewed, how many clickthoughs were generated, and how many site visitors converted to subscribers.

Choice vs. Simplicity

Wed, 4 Oct 2006 11:37:44 -0400

It is tempting to provide web site visitors with a broad range of options and choices.

In fact, online marketers often fear that unless they provide the broadest possible range of choices, they might miss out on what a prospective customer or subscriber is looking for.

But what happens when you provide multiple choices and options?

In this brief we look at test data that reveals how people actually respond when faced with complex choices and simple choices.

The MEC Guide to Presenting Your Case for Testing

Wed, 20 Sep 2006 17:00:00 -0400

Most marketers understand the importance of online testing. But how can one best convince senior management?

While online marketers in large and medium-sized companies and organizations know from case studies and other published data that a testing program can yield dramatic increases in revenues, they often find it hard to sell the need for testing internally within their own companies.

What is the best way to present the benefits of testing to your manager or senior management team?

Small PPC Engines Revisited

Wed, 6 Sep 2006 16:42:28 -0400

Small PPC Engines Revisited - Two years ago we conducted a study of small PPC engines to find out whether they offered online marketers a profitable opportunity to generate more sales.

At that time our research indicated that these smaller engines could indeed generate significant additional revenues.

Today, two years later, and with even more intense bidding for keywords on the major PPC engines Google, Yahoo! and MSN we wondered whether these smaller engines still offered a profitable source of additional traffic and income.

Optimizing Free Trial Offers

Thu, 24 Aug 2006 16:03:38 -0400

Optimizing Free Trial Offers - Can copy and design changes alone significantly lift the performance of free trial offer pages?

Merchandising Calendar for 2006 Fall & Holiday Season

Thu, 10 Aug 2006 17:29:31 -0400

Merchandising Calendar for the Fall & Holliday Season 2006 - Which gives the best return on your investment - Pay Per Click or building strong affiliate partnerships?

The ROI on PPC vs. Affiliate Marketing

Wed, 26 Jul 2006 12:35:01 -0400

The ROI on PPC vs. Affiliate Marketing - Which gives the best return on your investment - Pay per Click advertising, or building strong affiliate partnerships?

Testing The Power Of Urgency On Landing Pages

Thu, 13 Jul 2006 12:21:25 -0400

Testing the Power of Urgency on Offer Pages - In the world of offline direct mail it has long been understood that creating urgency increases conversion rates. Typically a special offer of some kind will expire on a particular date.

Essential Metrics for Online Marketers

Wed, 21 Jun 2006 15:52:26 -0400

How to create a simple metrics dashboard to track what really matters.