The page that sold nothing taught me everything
Turns out, nobody reads a sales page with an open mind
Underestimating the emotions your prospect is feeling when reading your sales page can cost you some serious sales.
Melodramatic? Maybe.
But I also know what the disappointment of getting no sales feels like. And let me tell you, the feeling is not great.
Here is what happened.
I was writing a sales page for one of my personal projects - I was so excited. It was my very early days as a copywriter, so I was careful with the structure, making sure all the right elements of the sales page were there. The hero section was good, the objections were handled, the CTA was clear and low risk, the copy was flowing with a nice upbeat tone.
‘Sounds perfect’, you would think. I thought so too…
Except, it wasn’t.
The page was not converting… No matter what tweaks I did, it wasn’t working.
Propped up on coffee and chocolate digestives, I was furiously searching through my copywriting books to figure out what to do. And I had to figure it out - calling it quits is not how I operate.
Much head-scratching later, the penny finally dropped. Thank God.
I knew why the page wasn’t working and that, to me, was everything.
What I learnt from that sales page stuck with me to this day. Ever since that project, the things that were missing then, are the things I now keep top of mind every single time.
Here is what my lightbulb moment was about.
Prospects never really evaluate your offer with a blank mind.
Prospects are not neutral readers. They come with history, past experiences, a certain level of distrust, and an internal dialogue that is already making assumptions about your solution. They have seen social posts, adverts, or even heard opinions from other people on offers similar to yours. Perhaps they have even used something similar in the past and it worked (or not).
In other words, not every prospect will see the sales page with an open mind, full of optimism and rainbows. Some will come driven by interest and intrigue, but with high scepticism, and the sales page needs to start the right internal conversation, so that they warm up to the idea regardless of the state of mind they are in.
Uri Hasson from Princeton University found that when the speaker tells a story, the mind of the listener syncs with the mind of the storyteller. Which means, if the sales page includes the right narrative, you can influence the story that runs in the prospect’s mind so that it says what you want them to hear and turns the volume down on any preconceived opinion they came to your sales page with.
The decision will be rational.
Harvard professor Gerald Zaltman found that 95% of purchase decision-making takes place in the subconscious mind – we decide with our emotions – the rational mind only looks for ways to justify the decision.
If the sales page only focuses on presenting the offer, what’s included, what are the guarantees, what are the credentials of the seller, etc., it will speak to the rational mind. While these elements are important to include – they facilitate the justification of the purchase – a good sales page will also have elements that speak to the real decision maker – the emotions. And there is no better way to engage emotions than a story.
Remember, the prospect is likely to come to your sales page with a certain level of scepticism. A page that absorbs the prospect in a story will quiet down the critical side and create a good set up for the persuasion to happen. With the right story that makes the reader feel genuinely seen, the sale becomes much easier.
The sale page can seem like a transactional step. It’s also the most important step. This is the part when the prospect confidently says ‘yes’. There is, however, a subtle force that makes the click happen – feeling confident to buy.
It’s easy to underestimate emotions, but they are in charge of the wallet. Get the emotions right, and the rest of the page is just paperwork.
Until next time,
Dot
P.S.
If you’re interested in reading more about the research I’ve mentioned above, here are the links to some great articles.
Very true and great point, Dot. It's easy to forget that people do not read copy in isolation, but rather through the lens of their own experiences. A useful reminder that every interaction still begins with a human-to-human communication and understanding.