Peter, Author at Peter Grandstaff

Above the Fold: Myth vs Reality

You’ve probably heard about how important it is to keep things “above the fold.” It seems simple, but a lot of people are missing the point. Let’s look at what really matters about “above the fold” and what’s just mythology.

Above the fold is an old newspaper term. It refers to the top half of the front page of the paper. That’s what sells the paper because it’s the part you can see without paying.

Note the lack of scroll bar or touchscreen on these old newspaper dispensers.

photo by Wayne Wilkinson www.flickr.com/photos/waynewilkinson/

The term has been adapted, in the digital age, to mean the part of a webpage that can be seen without scrolling. Notice the difference: in newspapers, “above the fold” was all you could see before paying. On a website it’s just the first bit of stuff you can see before paying. You’ve got a whole page to scroll through and work with.

Heck, there are probably even some other pages you could peruse for free.

So, don’t cram everything above the fold. You’ve got infinite amounts of paper and ink to work with. Use what space you need to make your point. After you’ve made your case with good, well-reasoned copy it’s time to seal the deal.

There’s a trend these days to put a big signup form or checkout button up above the fold on the home page. It’s like showing up for a first date with no pants on.
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What Can Toothpaste Teach You About Email Marketing?

Have you noticed how many different kinds of toothpaste there are?

There’s whitening and 24 hour protection. There’s Pro Health and Total. There’s cavity protection and stuff for sensitive teeth. Then they have every combination possible, different levels of whitening and your choice of paste or gel.

I find it pretty annoying, and I’m yet to find anyone who thinks otherwise. But, there’s a lesson here you can apply to your email marketing… without annoying anyone.

First off, let’s look at why are there so many kinds of toothpaste.

It’s market segmentation. They make an option to fit every desire and every budget. Supposedly, they’ll get more satisfied customers by meeting people’s needs more precisely. In the case of Crest and Colgate, I think they’re causing more frustration.

Either way, they are squeezing every last penny out of each consumer. If you’re willing to spend a lot on toothpaste, there are high priced options to let you… and don’t forget the special mouthwash, whitening strips and toothbrush to match. The same goes for folks who are up for moderate and low budget options.

There’s a price point for every budget.

Hardly a penny of profit is missed. Whatever you’re willing to spend on toothpaste, they’ll take it. Plus, a retailer has to devote so much shelf space to Crest and Colgate that other options are easy to overlook. (I suspect they ensure this by making retailers sign contracts detailing minimum shelf space coverage.)

That’s annoying market segmentation. You’ll see it in pet food, too, and even yogurt! But, that doesn’t mean market segmentation is a bad idea.

When you’re communicating with a customer, client or donor, you’re speaking to an individual. When you send out an email blast, you’re speaking to a bunch of people at once. Segmentation can help make your communications more personal and profitable.

Time for an example.
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Are you getting Pinned on the 15th most popular site in the US?

If you’re a heavy Pinterest user, you’ll probably want to skip to the bottom where I have some links for more advanced study. If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about this thing called Pinterest, or what the heck Pinterest is in the first place, come right this way…

Pinterest is a social sharing site that’s been around for a little over two years. In that short span of time, it has become the 15th most popular website in America. That puts it right above ESPN and right below Bing, as I write this. (Alexa updates these rankings daily.)

So, how can such a popular website be so unknown to so many people? Take one glance at the site and you’re sure to see fashion tips, attractive men, and something baby-related. As a man, I’ve found it hard to engage with because of this. I feel out of place there.

But, I shouldn’t. There are plenty of more gender neutral or even male-oriented posts on there. They just aren’t in the majority, so they don’t show up much on the home page.

And, you shouldn’t avoid it because you don’t feel like you fit the demographic, either. The fact is Pinterest is generating tons of traffic and buzz. I suspect the user base will become more diverse over time.

Enough introduction. Here’s how it works:

It’s a place to share links from around the web.
You can log in with a Facebook account. (or not.)
You “pin” interesting things you find around the web.
You create “boards” to organize your pins.
Each item that gets pinned comes with a big image taken from the site it originated from.
You can comment on pins or “repin” them to share with others.
You can follow people or boards to be updated when new items are pinned.

It’s like a visual guide to interesting content on the web. Simple. Yet it’s still kind of overwhelming.

You’ve just got to dive in and use it a bit. When you first sign up it will help you find some things to follow for starters. Then, I’d suggest doing some searches for things you like — and follow some of the boards you find.

For example: Sushi, Sci Fi, Humor, Llamas, Espresso, Advertising

If you’re a Facebook user, you’ll probably find that some of your friends are already on Pinterest. Follow them there and see how they use it.

Keep an eye out for pins that get lots of repins, likes and comments. The more of those, the more traffic heads to the site that was pinned.

Obviously it’s very visual. You’re never going to get your blog posts to be popular on Pinterest if you don’t have good images in them. You should already be on top of this, though. Facebook uses the images on pages that get shared to help grab attention too.

Of course, you don’t want to just sign up and just pin things from your own website. Remember, it’s social. Pin things from all over the web, and try to stay focused on things that would interest your target market. Pin your own content in such a way that it fits in with the other things you’re pinning.

Ready to get more in-depth? Already know the basics and totally bored by this newsletter? Check these out:

Become a Better Communicator in 7 Minutes

Three Writing Books Worth Having Do you think you can find 7 spare minutes each week? Do you think you could improve one of your most vital business skills with that time? Yes, I’m talking about communication. Whether you’re sending a text or drafting a formal letter, getting your thoughts across quickly and clearly can make a huge difference.

Your writing will affect the impression you make. It will impact how quickly people are able to start acting on your instructions and how well they’ll understand you. It’s easy to forget how much it matters.

Find 7 minutes in your week (or everyday if you’re up for it!) Use that time to read 500 to 1,000 words. Then, keep what you’ve read in mind during the week.

Anyone can read a book about writing. It’s what you do with that information that counts.

Take in just a bit of instruction and, if you actually incorporate it into your thought processes, it can make a huge difference. Do that every week and you’re sure to see steady improvement.

You won’t become the next Shakespeare this way. Practice can’t turn you into a virtuoso, but it can help you improve. Every little bit helps.

You’ll need a starting place for your 7 minutes. Here are some books that I’ve found especially potent.

On Writing by Stephen King – I just finished this one. It’s the reason writing is on my mind today. There are some interesting autobiographical parts with a very solid writing guide in the middle.
The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White – King’s book turned me on to this one. It’s full of short sections (perfect for 7 minutes) about all aspects of writing clearly and vigorously.
The AP Stylebook – This is more of a reference book, but I find that I can usually find something worth knowing by flipping through it for a few minutes.
Persuasion: The Psychology of Influence by Robert Cialdini – It’s not a writing book, but so much of business writing involves persuasion that I think it belongs here.

Of course none of the advice you’ll read is written in stone. Writing is communicating. The correct way to write something is the way that gets your idea across with clarity. Rules and advice help you do that better and with less effort.

Why don’t we make this post count as your 7 minutes for the week? For the next week, keep these things in mind when you write.

Omit needless words.

–William Strunk Jr.

Use short sentences.

— Kansas City Star style guide (where Hemingway got his start)

The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do.

–Thomas Jefferson

Do you have a favorite writing resource? I’d love to know about it.

Facebook would rather I didn’t say this…

There are a couple things about Facebook ads that Zuckerberg would prefer I didn’t tell you. But, you should be informed.

First off, you may remember the Page Like Story and Sponsored Story ads I’ve discussed. They’re the ones that tell your friends that you’ve “Liked” something in hopes of getting people to follow your excellent lead. They do work well, but Facebook had a bit of legal trouble with them.

It turns out there was no way to opt out of having your “Likes” shown to others. A handful of users sued Facebook about this and the case was settled for $20 million — half for lawyers, half for charity. Also, you’ll now be able to opt out having your “Likes” publicized.

If the case had gone forward, Facebook could have been looking at a class action with 100 million members. I think they’re pretty happy with the outcome.

The other thing you should be aware of is that Facebook ads are really bad at sending traffic to your website.

My experience with this echoes what I’ve heard from others. If you set up an ad on Facebook that is a link to your own website rather than your Facebook Page, it’s not going to do you much good.

When people are on Facebook, they don’t seem to want to leave. If they do click your ad and land on your website, they won’t stay long. I’ve seen bounce rates over 90% and average time on site less than 10 seconds from these ads.

It’s a big waste of money.

It’s a different story when your ad leads people to your Facebook Page. Assuming there’s something beyond self promotional content on it, you could convert 30% or more into fans.

Once you have a fan, you can reach them over and over again. That’s how you get them onto your website — get them to “Like” you first, then invite them over for milk and cookies.

Just be sure to keep the blatant self promotion to a minimum.

Here are a few things you can post to get Facebook fans onto your site:

Interesting blog posts
Photos
Engaging videos
Contests
Coupons or discounts (You know, self promotion disguised as a favor.)

Mix that with some curated content — good stuff you find on other websites — and you’ll have a better Page than most.

Speaking of curated content, you might find these links about content strategy helpful:

Facebook Marketing Down to the Core – 4 Factors of Post Optimization
There are a lot of variables to figure out when posting to your Facebook Page. What kind of content should you post? How often should you post it? What time of day should you post? Read this article for a guided tour through these factors.

8 Attributes of Content That Inspires Action
Posting boring content isn’t going to do you much good. So, read this article for some great pointers for making content that will make an impact.

How to Succeed on Facebook (Even if You Hate It)

I don’t really care for Facebook. I bet you don’t exactly love it either. Maybe you even hate it. The problem is that you have to use it these days or you’ll be left in the dust.

Seriously. Facebook gets as much traffic as Google. Despite this, people don’t really like it. One survey found that user satisfaction with Facebook was on par with the IRS or airlines. That’s pretty bad.

Here’s the good news: You can succeed on Facebook, no matter how much you dislike it. I’m referring to success in a business sense, of course. I’m sure you can find some help elsewhere if you’re worried about succeeding socially.

First off, let’s be clear about your objective on Facebook. Bring in more money? No. That comes later. To succeed on Facebook, your goal has to be to build an engaged community with a common interest.

People aren’t on Facebook to be sold things. There isn’t usually commercial intent with a Facebook user. There’s social intent. Engage with your audience socially and they’ll be more likely to remember you when they do have commercial intent.

So, you know your objective. How do you get there? If you want to skip to the advanced stuff, scroll down the the Sponsored Stories header below.

First, you need a Facebook Page for yourself or your organization. That part’s easy.

Next, you need to put content out there. Remember, you’re not selling. You’re connecting. Share useful articles, fun pictures, interesting videos, or news items that will interest your target audience.

How much to post and how often varies. You’ll have to experiment, and don’t be afraid to ask your fans if they’d like to hear from you more or less.

Now you’ve built it. They’ll come, right? Wrong. Your Facebook page is not a Field of Dreams. It needs to be promoted just like any other web property.

Here are a few ways to start promoting your page:

Put a link on your website — visitors to your site are hopefully in your target audience.
Share the page with your personal Facebook friends — they may not be your target audience, but you need some “likes” to get started.
Post viral content that people will want to share with their friends
Buy some “likes” if need be — don’t count on these being useful connections, but they can help get a new page off the ground.
Display QR codes at your physical location or at events
Run a Facebook Ad
Run a Sponsored Story

Numbers 6 and 7 will mean giving Facebook some money, but they are also the most effective ways of promoting your page. Sponsored stories are particularly potent, though widely misunderstood.

Since regular ads are fairly self explanatory, let’s jump right into Sponsored Stories.

Can’t You Just Get Your Fans to Spread the Word

Once upon a time, Facebook would expose your page to people every time one of their friends liked something you posted. No longer. They are trying to monetize now, as they stare down the barrel of an IPO.

Around November 1, 2011, Facebook Pages started getting more paid impressions than organic impressions. It was the other way around for a long time prior. Now they show more ads and make it harder for you to get organic impressions. It will probably get worse, too.

Advertising on Facebook is pretty affordable, though. It’s also pretty easy to get up and running with it.

Just remember to Always Run Tests and make Data Driven Decisions.

Check out part two of this guide to learn how to use different kinds of Facebook ads together and why you should have a Facebook ads account even if you aren’t running ads.

A 90 Year Old Secret to Online Marketing

Imagine what Bach would do with an electric guitar... it would probably sound a lot like Van Halen.

Ninety years ago a book was being written by a man named Claude Hopkins. That book would reveal an advertising secret that revolutionized the industry. It was called Scientific Advertising and it’s been a “must read” ever since.

And, it’s even more useful today, online.

There are two components to this method, and I have a pair of acronyms to help you remember them.

ART – Always Run Tests.

3D – Data Driven Decisions.

Let’s dive in to these old concepts and see how they can drastically improve the performance of your marketing campaigns today.

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