The Design Center, DT&G Web Design & Review  /  How to shoot your site in the foot

Doug's Rules

Rule #1 Direct Communication

Email is the simplest, cheapest and most powerful interactive feature you can include on your web site.

Some companies, in particular big manufacturers, make it nearly impossible for consumers to communicate directly and personally. They provide all kinds of automated "interactive" incentives for those who want more information, including forms to request literature on specific products and fax-back telephone numbers, but they're unwilling to invest in the manpower necessary to deal with the public one-on-one.

All the bells and whistles in cyberspace can't replace the value of personal contact.

Forms should never be used to replace email. Ah yes, I am familiar with the "one size fits all" mentality but it's just not true. At the very least give your customers a choice between sending email or filling out your form.

For one thing, when filling out a form a customer may type his email address incorrectly, making it impossible for you to respond. He'll go away thinking you're not interested in his business. When you receive email from a customer, you always get the correct return address.

Another downside is we just can't resist designing forms to ask questions we'd like to know but which the customer may in fact regard as an invasion of privacy. For example it's common to request the postal address and telephone number. Hey, the customer just wants to ask you a question!

Recently, I discovered a trade magazine offering a free one year subscription to their newsstand version; the only catch was I had to fill out a lengthy online questionnaire giving them substantial demographic insight into my life.

I figured it was a fair trade, so told them how much money I make annually, how many employees I supervise, what my job title was, the dollar values of how much computer hardware and software I had purchased in the last 12 months, the estimated dollar values for the coming year's purchases, the items which were on the top of "wish list" and dozens of more questions.

One week later a letter arrived from the magazine's publisher saying they "were sorry but I didn't qualify for their free magazine offer, however, they were willing to let me order a subscription for only $35 a year!" Did I feel burned? You Bet! And their dishonest scam continues today. Did I subscribe? What do you think!

Rule #2: Make it Easy

Make it easy for potential customers to communicate with you. DonÕt make visitors hunt for your email address! When visiting some "web storefronts" IÕve had to load page after page in search of how to contact them. This can get pretty exasperating after the third or fourth try.

Always put your email address on the home page or provide a link to a document called contact.html from your home page. When you add your postal mailing address, telephone and fax numbers, and hours of business your credibility score climbs with consumers. Toll free numbers for taking sales orders, while not cheap, pay for themselves in increased business because consumers are willing to give their credit card number over the phone when they make the call.

Include your email address and web URL in all your printed communications, on your stationery and envelopes, in catalogs and brochures, on billing statements and more.

Admittedly, thereÕs just one drawback to providing an email address on your web site. It virtually guarantees youÕll receive unsolicited spam email. Live with it and delete it. And donÕt even think about requesting "removal" from the spammerÕs mailing list. Doing so will validate your email address and ensure a steady flow of future junk.

If you are paranoid about spam, the use any of the proven methods for masking your email address -- or simply put it in a GIF graphic. The harvesters can't swipe your address from an image!

Rule #3: Respond

Customer response is what makes a company a winner. This means you should answer email quickly before the customer looks elsewhere, and even when youÕre unable to meet the customerÕs needs.

Many companies are trashing their chances for making a sale with their ho-hum "couldnÕt-care-less" approach to answering the email they receive. A blind test performed last year by a national polling firm found many businesses took 14 days or longer to respond to email requests for information. Unless youÕre the only company in the world offering your product, by then youÕve lost the sale.

This is worth repeating:
      I will not put off until tomorrow what I can answer today.

Doug's Rules continue...

Douglas Clifford is the webmaster of the ACE Indexes, an annotated directory of photo commerce web sites, and online photography and digital imaging magazines.

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