How to maximize your site's response rate with continual optimization by Rachelle Money, 1 May 2009

Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg are the authors of a bunch of books like Waiting for Your Cat to Bark? and Call to Action which got them on the New York Times, Business Week and the Wall Street Journal's best sellers lists. They started their company FutureNowInc.com more than a decade ago and have just launched a new program called OnTarget, a service which monitors your website 24/7, uncovers reasons as to why it's under-performing, and then gives you specific recommendations to help keep your revenue goals on target. The Eisenberg brothers spoke to Rachelle Money about how they came up with the idea.

The problem with analytics

Did you know that a recent poll found more than half of American and British marketing professionals said they didn't use analytics to measure their online campaigns? You can see it on Bizreport.

In spite of this, 62% of the 1,545 polled by Alterian said they had plans to increase their online spending. These kinds of statistics prick the ears of many an analyst, especially when the same survey found that 25% of respondents believe that analyzing results is the most difficult part of a campaign.

Are your goals on target?

It's an interesting situation — marketers aren't using analytics because they find it too difficult, but they do have the cash to invest online. There's a nice little business opportunity here for someone to take full advantage of, and it seems that that's exactly what Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg have done with their recently launched software-as-a-service OnTarget These guys, with more than a decade of experience in the conversion and optimization business, have discovered why so many businesses are falling short of their potential.

OnTarget is a web-based service from FutureNowInc.com which measures and analyzes web traffic and then delivers a 'to do' list of recommendations which will improve conversion. The main benefit is that companies don't have to hire analysts (not so great news if you work as one), and the recommendations are based on the resources you already have.

The art of execution

Bryan Eisenberg told me that he and his brother launched OnTarget in response to a distinct lack of 'execution' from businesses.

"As analysts we'd give companies big binders full of our thoughts and an analysis of their website, and then it was up to the client if they had the resources to implement those resources. Usually it would take a client up to a year to execute on those recommendations (and by that time they had probably forgotten what they were measuring!)

"We aren't the smartest people in the world, because it took me and Jeff ten years to figure this out. The problem was, no matter how good the advice was, people couldn't execute and therefore the advice was bad in the first place."

Bryan isn't surprised that many find analytics tricky. He believes that 80% of implementation is done improperly because people will often misread or misinterpret their analytics data.

Measuring online success

Earlier this month Todd Friesen of Search Insider said that in his ten years as an SEO he is still amazed by people who have little idea as to how to measure online success. He says that many of his clients run into trouble because there are no analytics in place; or that they have analytics but no goals; or worse still that they have no general understanding of what should or even can be measured.

He wrote: "My sales pitch always involves a spiel that goes something like, 'We can run all the ranking reports you want, but those reports are only as good as the keyword list we use and will always be a partial representation of what's happening.'"

Friesen continues: "Yes, money in the bank is the ultimate goal – but if you don't know how it got there, you're going to spend too much of it in the wrong places."

Bite-sized recommendations

OnTarget provide clients with more effective means of identifying where the site falls short. They produce an interface with a list of recommendations to increase conversion – which could be changing the design of a page, re-writing text or tags, or link building. It's basically a 'to do' list in bite-size chunks which helps implementation, and they even tell you how long they think it will take to action the advice given. Each month you have a list of tasks which help you maintain your goal of continuously improving your website. OnTarget will find out where the trouble spots are in your site, ie, why your visitors are failing to buy, register or subscribe to your product.

The Eisenbergs can't really escape the original problem of execution because a company needs to be in a position to change. If you aren't ready for that then you won't ever be able to increase your profits.

Ready for change

So, is OnTarget a kind of extreme makeover for websites?

Jeffrey says they offer clients "little band aids rather than major surgery."

"The change they need to be ready for is that they have to agree the website will never be good enough - that's an extreme change in attitude for some people. We want to be change agents and we're trying to bring this continuous change mentality to the web."

By introducing what the Eisenbergs call software-as-a-service, aren't they in danger of losing that close relationship which exists between analyst and client?

Bryan contests this suggestion by saying he thinks their relationships with clients have actually become stronger.

"The best way to build a relationship is through success," he says with a laugh.

"Very early on we make sure that OnTarget is set up properly and that you have all your goals set up. We also do private 'webinars' for our clients where they can ask us questions so we can make sure that people are on top of it from the beginning. Actually, I think our client relationship is stronger because of that individual process."

Bryan continued by saying that "the very nature of consultancy is a model which is broken because of its extreme inefficiency."

For him software-as-a-service is the new model because you don't have to pay either for a consultant's expenses or travel costs, or for the volumes of reports. Bryan told me that OnTarget has stripped away all that extra cost which eats into profit margins to help the client.

On target with keywords

When you set up an OnTarget account they ask for some information on your site, including ranking your keywords in terms of how effective they are in the buying process. Explains Bryan:

"Keyword research is at the core of understanding who your customers are and why they want to buy from you. If you don't have that you are immediately handicapped."

"It's an exercise that means we can see whether your assumptions are correct and also where your failures are. Everything is a question until it's been proved. We say you should take your best guess and then with metrics we can prove it. We also ask for a confidence level out of one to ten, with most people giving about four."

He adds: "Let's say they have built a site and they have gotten good at generating traffic and sales from certain keywords. Unless you are a content type [of website] and your revenue comes from ads you probably want them [visitors] to do something.

"On a keyword level we are emphasizing keywords which bring in traffic. Keywords give us that insight into which searches and phrases bring people in with a buying intent versus a research intent."

This can be the difference between bookshelves (buying intent) and book reviews (research intent).

Proof in the pudding

So what kind of effect has OnTarget had on their clients?

"Let me give you two examples of some findings we got the other day," offers Jeffrey.

"One was from a very small company that got a 7.39% lift on one of their goals. This little change made them $13,000. We also had one lady who had a $300,000 annual business which now has over $700,000 per annum. She's more than doubled her business in four and a half months.”

Bryan chips in: "We have one guy who was trying to purchase OnTarget but he was worried about the price. His website is more of a hobby and he's now got a minimum of a 25% increase in his business a year, which is around $40,000 for him.

"The thing is, when we talk about a three or five per cent growth a month, the true impact of that will depend on your business. If you have a healthy business that could be huge."

There are three different packages you can take out, at $1000, $2,500 or $5,000 per month.

Although the Eisenbergs wouldn't reveal how many OnTarget clients they have, they did say they are now selling more services in a month than they used to in a quarter.

No guarantees

The OnTarget website has many client testimonials and rave reviews but don't let that fool you into thinking these guys can guarantee you the same kind of success. In fact, if you ask for a guarantee they'll talk you out of the sale!

Bryan explains by saying an offer of a guarantee could mislead people.

"We are not going to spend any time blowing smoke. What we are saying is that this is in your control, it's up to you to do the work.

"If you are thinking about how credible our advice is then read our books or our blogs, watch the webinars or go onto our websites and check it out. We are not interested in convincing you. However, if you are ready to go to work and you buy the approach and you commit yourself to the work - I can't guarantee – but I know that it works.

"It's like losing weight - you can decide to eat well and exercise – or not! Nobody can guarantee weight loss unless they are standing behind you with a calorie counter and then drive you to the gym."

It's interesting to hear the Eisenbergs talk about their distaste of guarantees, but wait to hear what they say about experts!

"Unfortunately too many people become lazy. They write a book, they talk at a conference and all of a sudden they are experts," says Bryan.

Jeffrey agrees, pointing out that: "We have 'social media experts' now. When you google it you get thousands of results. How can you possibly be an expert in that?

"In any other business you need 20 or 30 years in the business before you can call yourself an expert. Yet in the web market if you can spell it you can make yourself an expert. This is a real concern for us."

He adds: "Continuous optimization is not a skill that many people are claiming to be experts in right now, but wait a year and you'll find thousands will be on the web claiming just that. In fact just wait until this article is published!"

What's interesting is OnTarget's commitment to develop the program into a community where optimization is less of a project and more about continuous improvement, and the responsibility for which is taken up by a team of professionals that might include copywriters, marketers and web designers.

Building an OnTarget ecosystem

Bryan says that over the next few months their website will form the basis of an 'ecology' – where businesses can link into OnTarget's partners who will be able to offer expertise in areas where their own company lacks. For example, if OnTarget believes your site would benefit from copy being re-written but you don't have a copywriter, then they would direct you to a partner agency who offers copywriting services.

Bryan sums up by saying: "We are moving to a continuous optimization company which will offer a lifestyle change for the business."