So knowing this, when it comes to landing pages why would you want to cram as much choice in there to confuse and paralyze people from taking action? Wouldn’t it be better to focus on one product, service or offer at a time?

Too Many Options on Your Landing Pages Gets You Less Conversions not More

Let’s take the example of an ecommerce site that sells running shoes. Let’s say the site sells all the major brands and models. Now a great landing page would be one where one specific brand or model is listed and nothing else. But more often than not, we come across landing pages that prominently feature one model while also listing a variety of other models a visitor can choose from – supposedly in case they don’t like the main model shown on the page. If the owners of these landing pages would conduct a path analysis in their web analytics solution, I’m sure they’ll find that a significant amount of visitors will click on the other models and will go on browsing multiple models only to exit the site completely without buying anything. Why you ask?

Because now they have a choice to contemplate before buying. So instead of making it easy for them, landing pages with too many choices will cause them to hold off and “sleep on” their decision before committing to a purchase. They tell themselves “I’ll come back later when I have more time to go over all these options”. And of course most never do.

To make matters worse, among those that do buy, many will not be quite happy with their purchase because they have it at the back of their minds that maybe they didn’t make the right choice.

So now that it’s clear that more choice leads to fewer conversions and more buyer’s remorse, get out there and make your visitors happy by giving them fewer choices on your landing pages!

Your sales team will thank you.

In short, Étienne is an expert at improving user experiences on websites and landing pages helping to drive better results by increasing conversion rates (sales, leads, signups, etc.). All things that are handy when trying to get the most out of a paid search campaign!

I asked Étienne to share some insights on his experience and expertise – here’s what he had to say:

Xurxo: How did you get your start in Usability, and what keeps you there?

Étienne: I’ve been doing Web design for the last 10 years. My obsession for improving designs have led me to create my own research and testing methodologies which were formalized through work experiences and schooling.

I’m more passionate than ever about usability. New technologies like the iPhone are raising awareness towards the importance of having a good user interface which, creates a lot of interesting opportunities in my field. After all, you can have the best looking website in the world but, if it doesn’t reach your goal, it may be time to consider a redesign.

Xurxo: What are you most passionate about when it comes to Usability?

Étienne: I’m passionate about creating perfect user experiences. Seamless interfaces with all the right options available at the right time and position. I love helping companies get there through user testing, usability reviews, analytics, redesigns, strategy etc. before watching the results roll in.

Xurxo: Tell us a bit about your approach, for example how do you convince people that have never done usability reviews and testing to start seeing this as an opportunity?

Étienne: Often times, only minor changes are required in order to generate additional revenues. It’s important for companies to see their website’s potential for improvement.  Adapting to usability feedback is often easy and generate quick gains. The money invested in usability is only a fraction of the revenues it will generate.

Xurxo: What’s your elevator pitch?

Étienne: Kotsego is for result-oriented businesses who are dissatisfied with approximate design solutions. Our services (landing page optimization, usability audits and user testing) provide companies with a concrete way to increase conversion rates. Unlike other usability firms, we focus our usability research on increasing profitability for our customers.

Xurxo: Which blogs are a must read for you – those that you absolutely can’t wait for the next post to come out?

Étienne: I enjoy Don Norman and Jakob Nielsen’s websites and industry benchmarks because they provide a lot of data and insight on things that can help my customers. Boxes and Arrows is a must-read blog on user testing and design while Konigi and 37signals are excellent design resources I read everyday.

BONUS QUESTION:

Xurxo: Why should you invest in usability during tougher economic times when budgets are being cut?

Étienne: Usability can help businesses make the best of their current traffic by improving conversion rates (average increase is 83% – [Nielsen]). Good usability and user experience also help increase traffic through word of mouth and repeat transactions in an increasingly competitive market. The times may be harder but usability can help you make the best of what you already have.

Xurxo: Thanks Étienne!

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About Kotsego
Kotsego is a user-centered design agency focused on increasing profitability through usability. Services include landing page optimization, Web design, usability reviews, usability testing and design strategy. Visit www.kotsego.com to learn more, check out their web usability blog or follow twitter.com/kotsego.