12 ways to make your website do more by saying less

You’ve probably figured out by now I’m a big proponent of “less is more.” And Allison Graham’s website, which I talk about in the latest episode of “What’s Missing From This Message?,” is a great example of it.

Whether you watch the video or look at her website now (she’s continued to tweak the site since I made the recording), you can how she uses a few “less is more” techniques that would benefit anyone’s website:

• She opens with a headline that clearly articulates an outcome her audience is already looking for. This quickly establishes relevance (“Yes, that’s me!”), and then curiosity (“How?!”).
• She indicates how she can help her audience achieve that outcome (she references her problem-solving framework). This helps make her message concrete (“I have an actual way to do this”) and builds additional curiosity (“What’s the framework? How does it help me achieve those things?”). The audience now has her minimum viable message: how she delivers something people want, via a means they don’t expect.
• Notice that she uses no jargon or proprietary language “above the fold” (what you can see onscreen without scrolling). In the previous version, she introduces a great metaphor (which I still love), but in her follow-on edits, she’s focused her message even more clearly on outcome and approach.
• She uses a succession of six sentences to create her minimum viable case that the design dictates you read in order (which I think is brilliant). In the video version, she’s using a metaphor to do this. In the current version, she’s explaining it directly in these sections:
• Here’s what your world looks like right now (this helps narrow her audience to those whose experience matches up)
• This is what will likely happen if things continue this way (this likely confirms her audience’s suspicions, narrowing them further, and helps establish her credibility, as it’s written from the perspective of someone who’s seen where the issues in the first sentence can lead)
• I don’t solve this the way you might think I do (this immediately sets her apart and again creates curiosity)
• Here’s the point of view my approach represents (notice she isn’t saying what she does here, she’s defining what drives it)
• Here’s how my approach connects with your desired outcomes (this links the copy to the opening and creates curiosity to learn more about it)
• Here’s what the results will be, even above and beyond what you were looking for (this helps move from the promise, “I can help you solve X problem,” to possibility — ”You’ll gain Y and Z, too.”
• She sums all of that up in the headline of a new section (this both summarizes the previous section and connects the next one tightly to what’s she’s said before)
• She adds a video for reinforcement and variety (the video covers a lot of the same ground of her copy, but by doing it in video form, she’s confirming the information she’s shared so far, and adding the additional information of how you feel about Allison after watching and hearing from her directly)
• She follows that main intro with a call to action (she probably could have introduced the CTA earlier, but I like it here, as it represents the first opportunity for someone to confirm they like what they’ve seen and heard)
• She includes a series of relevant, high-level testimonials as a bridge to more specific information (at this point, if someone is intrigued by Allison’s approach, they likely want to get some confirmation of others’ experiences and impressions; that helps validate both the audience’s curiosity and Allison’s approach)
• She gives a high-level and visual summary of her approach (the copy gives her a chance to add in additional benefits — you’ll be able to use this approach on multiple topics — and to confirm the results; the visual gives people a quick introduction to the topics and how they connect [I’d still like to see a little more information on what those three steps entail])
• She places her bio after she’s finished presenting her message, and gives you an option for how much you see (she leads with what her audience cares about most: how she’s going to solve their problems; if they’re interested in that, then they’ll want to know more about her)
• She follows with a high-level outline of her offerings (this lets the audience say, “I have that problem, I intrigued by your solution, I believe you’re the right person… now tell me how I can work with you.”)
• She ends on a simple call to action (this repeats the earlier CTA, but now, by using the calendar link, she’s making it ultra-clear what the next step is and making it ultra-simple to take it)

The reason her website does “less is more” so well is that, for Allison, “less” isn’t just about the number of words. It’s about the meaning of them. Even more importantly, Allison understands that she needs to lead with what the audience cares about and in the order they care.

After all, for Allison’s website and yours, it’s the audience that needs to take action, so it’s their needs that should dictate what you say, where, when, and how.

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#marketing #messaging #persuasion #startup #entrepreneurship #psychology