Why Isn’t My Marketing Campaign Performing Better?

You have a sizable e-mail list, a healthy paid search budget, your site is optimized for Google, and you’re building a strong following in social media. But despite your best effort, the number of new leads flowing in doesn’t reflect all of this initiative.

If any of the following scenarios resonate with you…

• Less than 1% of website visitors complete our lead gen form to request a live demo. How can I convert more prospective buyers on my paid search landing page?
• People open our e-mails, but very few go beyond that. How can I get more customers to click-through my e-mail promotions and take action?
• We get a ton of page views, but no one is commenting on our company blog. Is the content truly connecting with our target audience?
• Our Facebook ad drove hundreds of new “likes,” but we didn’t see the level of social activity we were hoping for.
• We spent a lot of money developing a research paper to drive new leads, but nobody is downloading it. Why not?
• The bounce rate on our product page is 75% and I don’t understand why.

…there are several ways to get to the bottom of why your marketing campaign or website isn’t performing the way you want.

A/B Tests

Try different messaging, different form fields, graphics, colors, more content, less content, and so on, until you hit on one or more treatments that does the trick. Review A/B testing best practices or hire an expert, then create a testing plan to keep track of which elements you’ve tested, when, and the results.

There are numerous tools available to help you conduct A/B tests without the assistance of a web developer. Your CMS (content management system) may already have this capability built-in. If you use Google Analytics, the Experiments tool is available for free (look under Behavior, then click “Experiments” on the left side of GA).

Online Surveys

Poll your current customers and ask them how your e-mails, blog posts, research papers, or website can better serve their needs. Send out a quick survey to a small segment of your e-mail list or intercept your website’s visitors with a pop-up invitation to your online survey.

Voice of Customer Data

Measure customer experience at a granular level with a voice of customer (VOC) tool, such as Foresee Results, iPerceptions, or OpinionLab. VOC allows you to gather insights at an overall experience-level or at a page-level with a research tool that is embedded on your website.

Or for Even Deeper Insights…

If you are already using one or more of the above tools— but haven’t yet answered “why” or you need even deeper answers — there is another research method to consider.

Have you ever tried conducting a moderated usability study on your marketing campaign? Usability studies aren’t just for websites and mobile apps. They can be used for instruction booklets, on-boarding software for new hires, voicemail systems, and many other types of communication vehicles and systems — online and offline.

Usability testing is one of the most cost effective and efficient ways to identify big or simple problems that prevent your customers from taking action.

For example, usability testing your marketing campaign might uncover:

• An undetected web error that prevents customers from completing your lead gen form.
• A confusing label that customers misinterpret to mean something else.
• Customers not being able to find the information they’re looking for — even though it’s right in front of them.
• The content your customers want is just below-the-fold, and therefore, completely invisible.
• The topic of your paper is not aligned with what your customers really need.
• Your paid search landing page doesn’t fulfill the promise made in your Google search ad.

It doesn’t take long to uncover major issues. In fact, in as few as 5 usability tests you can identify the biggest obstacles, plus gather insights on how to course correct. As soon as the largest issues begin to emerge, we recommend using the rest of the usability study to test new solutions (while also avoiding new problems).

When usability testing, you never know what you might find. Sometimes the smallest changes can make the biggest impact. We’ve seen minor changes on a lead gen form generate millions in incremental revenue. For more proof that usability studies can uncover a veritable goldmine lurking within your site, read The $300 Million Button.

Interested in learning more about usability testing your marketing campaigns, website, or software? Read more about our usability testing process or contact us.