The button that left $10,000 on the table

There is one key thing all web pages need that will make you thousands of dollars every time. FRED SCHEBESTA

By Fred Schebesta

What is the key thing that all web pages need? It’s something so simple, but can make or break your campaigns. Let me tell you a story before I let you in on the $10,000 secret.

Would HP leave money on the table?

I have been researching computers recently and noticed on our friendly SmartCompany site a banner ad for HP. See below:

Essentially you can get a Free 160GB pocket media drive for any order of a specific notebook or desktop. I clicked through and looked at the landing page to see what types of models this would come with. The page loaded up and I could see the offer presented nicely.

Landing page of HP special offer

To be honest I wasn’t ready to buy because I wanted to see how much it would cost to ship, so I decided I would add it to my cart and checkout until it calculated my shipping price. Unfortunately, HP left me hanging and didn’t give me a button to add it to my cart.

The secret revealed

So there is one button that prevented HP from making their sales. It was just like HP had left money on the table. Do you have a money button on all pages?

Money buttons

Money buttons mean different things to users. It’s important to connect the action you want them to take with the text on the button. This plays into what convention has taught people and increases your conversion rate.

• Buy now – And easy action to take, which also includes some time pressure.
• Apply now – Not everyone can join this particular item and instead you are required to apply.
• Free instant download – Get this whitepaper for free, immediately and straight to your computer. No need to wait for the boys at the snail mail factory.
• Book now – There are quite a few people and tend to be limited places, so you will need to register your interest. Usually a confirmation will come back after this.
• Apply online – Complete a form but do it online, there is no offline method to get this benefit.

Fred Schebesta’s company Freestyle Media is an established innovative online marketing agency specialising in building search engine friendly corporate websites and running online marketing campaigns.

For more Online Marketer blogs, click here.

Comments

Joyie Choi writes: I agree, so often I would check online because I think online may have the info I want that is not readily available in stores, and also the cost. I found that it’s very frustrating that websites are not UPFRONT about how much it costs to buy this & that.