This is a talk about e-commerce. What makes it work. What causes it to fail. There are four main topics in this presentation - from simple practical considerations to the more obscure cognitive triggers. IAs need to know this stuff and act on it in an informed, professional manner and each topic certainly deserves a presentation of its own – or a conference of its own. My aim here is simply to set your grey-matter in motion by introducing you to some generic problems and solutions that transcend almost all e-commerce solutions. Here’s the quick-and-dirty rundown: 1. Forms and basic functionality - the crap needs to work 2. Building shared references - folks won't buy what they don't understand 3. Value-added services - enhancing the experience through context 4. Cognitive triggers - influencing irrational decision-making processes

1. Increase the size of your
package in just four weeks
Eric Reiss
@elreiss
IA Summit 12
April 2, 2011
Denver, Colorado

2. Of brains, buttons, and
late-night television
Eric Reiss
@elreiss
IA Summit 12
April 2, 2011
Denver, Colorado

3. Rewarding Understandable
Intuitive/emotional Rational/physical

4. Let the games begin…

7. Thanks for
playing.
Goodbye.
Right answer.
Wrong focus.

10. Words of wisdom #1
Forms are the Elmer Fudds
of e-commerce.

11. Words of wisdom #2
Your form may be the first
and only true dialog you
have with a customer.

12. Words of wisdom #3
There is no such thing
as “online-conversion”
without a form that works.

13. The most (in)famous form of our time?
Source: L. David Roper

14. Words of wisdom #4
Bad form design costs more
than just customers.
A bad form can cost lives.

15. The top four problems with forms
• They come at a dumb time
• They are unintelligible
• They are difficult to complete
• They cannot be completed

19. Words of wisdom #5
If you want people to give
you something, give them
something first. They will
feel a sense of obligation.

22. “I don’t want to marry
you guys. I just want
to buy something. Stop
forcing a relationship
on me!”
A frustrated shopper

23. Opinionated observation #1
Some e-commerce sites are
essentially the cyberspace
equivalent of date-rape.

24. 10 things customers will tell you
1. Don’t tell me how great you are. BE great!
2. Go the extra mile.
3. Don’t get in my way when I’m trying to shop.
4. If I know what I’m looking for, help me find it.
5. If I have questions, I want straight answers, not a salestalk.
6. Tell me if you’re going off to look for my size. Don’t just turn and leave.
7. If you expect me to buy something, tell me what it costs
8. Are your own affairs so important that you feel justified in ignoring me?
9. Don’t make me feel stupid.
10. If you make a mistake, admit it.
Sources: Paco Underhill, Eric Reiss

25. The top four problems with forms
• They come at a dumb time
• They are unintelligible
• They are difficult to complete
• They cannot be completed

26. Courtesy of Mark Hurst

27. The top four problems with forms
• They come at a dumb time
• They are unintelligible
• They are difficult to complete
• They cannot be completed

30. Scary fact #1
About 75% of the people who
requested a password, didn’t
even try to complete a purchase
once requested.
Source: Jared Spool

33. No! 3727 853184 91XXX
Yes! 372785318491XXX
No: Strandøre 15
Yes: Strandoere 15

34. The top four problems with forms
• They come at a dumb time
• They are unintelligible
• They are difficult to complete
• They cannot be completed

40. Rewarding Understandable
Intuitive/emotional Rational/physical

42. Cairo
Egypt Illinois

43. And what are you looking for in a shoe?

49. What’s in our shared-reference toolkit?
Words

50. Words of wisdom #6
Content is king.
But context is the kingdom.

51. http://www.cdnow.com
“Words”
Words

52. “Who are they?”
“What is this?” “No habla inglés”
“I’m new to the web”
But culture can kill
“Words”

54. Old Hawaiian Hula Dancer Girl Motion Lamp
All original and signed Dodge Inc on the base. Shade is original also
but needs some repair or restoration. The hula girl is in wonderful
condition with a fabulous patina. There is a little loss to the bronze
finish at her right shoulder. No chips, cracks, repairs or scratches.
Hula mechanics work excellent -- strong and quiet. Light works also.
The only damage I have to report is the switch is bent some but still
works -- I don't want to try to straighten it and risk breaking it. There
are 4 settings--off, hula only, lamp only and lamp and hula. Wiring
looks good. Base is 7 1/4" diameter. Lamp is 18" tall to top of the
socket, 21 1/2" tall with shade attached. This is the very first hula girl
motion lamp -- she has a lei around her neck and around each
ankle. She looks to be made of bronze but I don't think so. Circa
1940's. What looks like spotting on the base is magnified dust
particles from rubbing my finger on her skirt to straighten it out -- my
camera really shows them up for some reason.

55. Scary fact #2
Longer text outperforms
short text by 40.5%
• Short-copy ROI = -14%
• Long-copy ROI = +21%
Source: Marketingexperiments.com

56. “Words fail me…”

62. Words of wisdom #7
Show Bugs the carrot patch.

63. Rewarding Understandable
Intuitive/emotional Rational/physical

65. I gss you cn rd ths txt :) wtht vwls.

66. And what comes next…
Big Mac
Large shake
???
Fries

67. Words of wisdom #6 (again)
Content is king.
But context is the kingdom.

68. The magic of context
• It differentiates your products
• It differentiates your company
• It provides a service
• It facilitates upselling

69. Scary fact #3
In the dark, all toothpaste looks alike.
But so does hemorrhoid cream.
Context differentiates. As does light.
Source: Eric Reiss

78. Words of wisdom #9
Bugs might be interested
in your lettuce patch, too.

79. Rewarding Understandable
Intuitive/emotional Rational/physical

81. New brain
MT = a + b log2(2A/W + c)
Mid brain
love, hate
Old brain
sex, survival

83. Cognitive challenges
• Control images and colors
• Limit choices (or expand them)
• Provide social validation
• Invoke scarcity
• Play on fear of loss

84. Click here Click here
21% increase in conversions
Source: University of Bergen, Norway

86. Cognitive challenges
• Control images and colors
• Limit choices (or expand them)
• Provide social validation
• Invoke scarcity
• Play on fear of loss

88. +
vs. vs.

89. Three different scenarios
Buy camera and case at same time
Expectation that some high-end cases would be sold
Case bought separately – two choices
Expectation that mostly low-end case would be sold
Case bought separately – three choices
Expectation that mostly mid-range case would be sold
Inspired by Dr. Susan Weinschenk

90. Cognitive challenges
• Control images and colors
• Limit choices (or expand them)
• Provide social validation
• Invoke scarcity
• Play on fear of loss

91. Social validation
Scarcity
Fear of loss

92. 39 x 3 = 117

93. Words of wisdom #10
It’s always funny when Bugs’
prefrontal cortex triumphs over
Elmer Fudds’s amygdala and
hippocampus.

94. Rewarding Understandable
Intuitive/emotional Rational/physical

96. Words of wisdom #11
You play the game.
Or you lose the game.

97. Eric Reiss can (usually) be found at:
The FatDUX Group ApS
Strandøre 15
2100 Copenhagen
Denmark
Office: (+45) 39 29 67 77
Mobil: (+45) 20 12 88 44
Twitter: @elreiss
info@fatdux.com
www.fatdux.com