Just a Little Optimization Would Be Nice…

by Parks Blackwell on 07/24/2009 at 2:29 pm in Checkout Optimization, Commentary, Conversion, User Experience

I travel fairly often for my job. I’m not exactly living out of a suitcase, but I’ve been on enough trips to know a good airport when I land in one. Like most people, I prefer abundant restaurants, multiple newsstands with the right pretzels and a plethora of gum to choose from. Certain terminals within airports are better than others. DFW for example built a lovely new terminal, (D for those of you interested) which has 2 story restaurants, a glass ceiling and multiple places to sit and read or make a phone call.

So, I ask – for the rest of the mediocre terminals out there… Let’s step it up a notch shall we? How about incorporating things like free power, I pay $7.00 for water – you can offer me a power outlet, or incorporating a dependable wireless network, one that might allow you to download a song in less than 1 hour.

Most of all, what would you say to a little bathroom update? Granted, 10 years ago people were less likely to have so much baggage. Now, we’re trying to fit everything we own into one small carry on and one personal item – neither of which fit in the bathroom stall. About the time I’m trying to figure out the geometric equation that will allow me and my items into the stall, I hear the man on the loudspeaker reminding me not to leave my items unattended. Thanks for that, Mr. Airport Man! You’re very helpful.

So in the spirit of changing times, when everyone and everything is different than it was 10 years ago – why do some of us still expect the old ways to work? Innovation is about more than an added feature; it’s about making what you have the absolute best it can be.

Our shoppers are evolved. They are all unique and they are sophisticated and they are very, very demanding. Driving someone to a unique landing page focused on his or her query is nice, but beyond that what do you do? Focus on the checkout. The real opportunity is to keep the conversion moving forward. Let your customer feel like they’ve accomplished something when they hit submit; don’t just serve up another form to fill out. Most importantly, listen to your customers. Drop off points and abandoned carts are big magnifying glasses into the mind of your customer. Sure, we used to speak of “abandonment” fairly often, but in a tough economy that conversation is a lot more relevant. If you’re spending money on marketing, make that marketing the best it can be. Your site is the real opportunity to gain market share, the only place where you as a marketer have complete control.

Traffic from an organic search behaves differently than traffic from display media. Embrace that notion, allow your customers to be unique. And please, stop trying to shove everything into a single stall, it’s just not going to fit no matter how you try.