The Stranger's Long Neck

Book excerpt: The long-awaited new title from THE corporate expert on building the right web presence to drive sales! In an age that is exploding with information, it's now critically important for companies to identify what truly matters on their Web site. The web customer is a “stranger” online to web teams who must work in a medium where it is very difficult to know who is clicking around on your site. Every Web site has a “long neck” or a small set of tasks that are very important to its customers. If you don't make these tasks easy and fast to complete, your customers will go to your competition. This book will give you practical advice and case studies on how to tune in effectively to deliver precisely what your web customers want to make the sale! Gerry McGovern is widely regarded as the number one worldwide authority on managing web content as a business asset. Named as one of the 100 most influential figures in e-commerce in the UK and Ireland, he has appeared on CNN , CNBC and BBC television and has been featured in numerous print media publications. Top 5 Tips for Improving Your Website by Gerry McGovern 1. On the Web, content may be king but the customer is dictator. There's one word to describe the web customer: IMPATIENT. 2. Traditional marketing and communication is about GETTING ATTENTION. Web marketing and communication is about PAYING ATTENTION. When customers are at your website you already have their attention. Don't waste their time by telling them things they already know. 3. Every website has a small set of top tasks what I call the “long neck” that customers expect to complete quickly and easily. The customers' top tasks are often not what the organisation thinks they are—or wants them to be! 4. The BIGGEST key to website improvement and efficiency of “long neck” consumer tasks is most often overlooked: companies must do rigorous, methodical and continuous testing! Great web management is based on facts about your consumers, not opinions offered by the smartest people in your company. 5. The Web is about doing, not talking about doing. A great website puts task-completion features on the homepage. In Web 1.0 you saw a picture of a hotel room on the homepage of a hotel website. Now, you book your room on the homepage. Find out more in The Stranger's Long Neck