Feature Article

Why Simplicity Is Essential To Web Design

by: Gerry McGovern

A simple website charges you less time. A complex website charges you more time. Time is your most precious resource.

Simplicity is highly overrated, according to Donald Norman, a design thinker I very much admire. "I'm a champion of elegance, simplicity, and ease of use," Norman writes. "But, as a business person, I also know that companies have to make money, which means they have to deliver the products that their customers want, not the products they believe they should want. And the truth is, simplicity does not sell."

So why do we buy complexity even when the simple option would be better? Three reasons. Firstly, because we do judge a book by its cover; we do think beauty is skin deep. If something looks complicated, then we immediately assume that it must be powerful; must have greater value.

Secondly, we love to show off. Complexity is like the peacock's feathers. It is brash and impossible to miss. Complexity lets other people know how clever we are and how rich, because we can afford such complexity.

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Thirdly, buying complexity is like buying insurance. We might not need all these fancy features right now, but there might be some time in the future when we will. Buying complexity insures us against future need.

"When users choose a feature-laden product, they may not be exhibiting a desire for complexity," Joshua Porter writes in his very interesting article, Simplicity: The Ultimate Sophistication. "Instead, users are anxious about predicting their future needs."

None of the above conditions operate on a website for the following reasons. First, we don't pay for visiting a website with our money; we pay for it with our time. The longer we spend on a website the more we pay, so there is a strong motivation to spend as little time as possible.

Second, websites are about the present, not the future. Investing in a product is about predicting all the future uses we may have for it. Visiting a website is about now. We have a particular need and we visit the website to meet that particular need.

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Website behavior is not about insuring against future conditions but rather about reaping the benefits of past actions. In other words, we like websites that resemble websites we're used to visiting, because they are more familiar and easier to navigate.

Third, we can't wear a website, drive around in it or show it off at a party. Browsing a website is essentially private behavior. When we go to Google we are usually alone. We search for cheap flights, but we certainly don't go around advertising that we're cheap.

If people loved complexity on the Web, then everyone would be using Advanced Search. We'd all be going to the 10th page of search results instead of clicking on one of the first three results on the first page.

We may still end up buying complex products on the Web, but our web behavior will remain relentlessly simple and hugely impatient. We use the Web during the ad breaks for Desperate Housewives. We simply don't have time to waste on complex navigation, convoluted language, or the vanity publishing of navel-gazing organizations

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For your web content management solution, contact Gerry McGovern www.gerrymcgovern.com Subscribe to his New Thinking Newsletter: subscribe@gerrymcgovern.mailer1.net

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Second Article

Basics of Marketing

by: Scott F. Geld Marketing Blaster, Inc.

Knowing what marketing actually is can be fundamental to any business, however small. No business can avoid marketing; without it, no one would know you existed. Of course, your actual merchandise or service is just as important, but without marketing, a brilliant idea is wasted.

To be a successful marketeer, you really have to understand the concept of marketing. Marketing is the science of making prospective customers into real purchasers! Even the best item in its class won't sell successfully if nobody is aware of it. Some items need less pushing than others, but sales of most artefacts will be boosted by the right kind of promotion. A sound method of marketing a product is to persuade potential buyers that they really must have it straightaway otherwise they'll miss out.

Where is the best place for an organization to start in order to maximize the effects of its marketing? First, get the fundamentals correct, as we are about to describe.

Before you can target anyone, you must know who they are. Understanding your potential customers is fundamental; to sell to someone you have to know what will get their focus and what will make them buy.

To understand your customers you need to think about how they think and how they function and what influences their decision to purchase something. You need to think about what they will think about your product. You need to think about how they will feel about your product and what will inspire them to buy your product.

Simply instructing someone to buy an item is not enough. A little persuasion is required. The item needs to attract the interest of the potential customer, preferably so much so that they'll make an immediate purchase. Marketing can be targeted at different sectors - male or female, young or old, etc. However, a mass market approach can often be used. The nature of your merchandise should determine the marketing strategy used.

The key to successful promotion is never to lose sight of the customers' needs, so that you can persuade them that your merchandise is just what they require.

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Scott F. Geld is the Director of Marketing for MarketingBlaster.com, a company specializing in affordable traffic (5 cents/visitor) and direct links for $5/link. For more information please visit: www.MarketingBlaster.com

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