Web 3.0Recommendation

Systemsfrom the perspective

of a corporate website

There is a significant distinction

between those sites investing in

Recommendation Systems and those

struggling to get their RSS feeds

working. Most websites are struggling

with RSS.

2009

• 2009 will see a significant increase in the scrutiny of corporate website performance; in the States, it is being referred to as the year of Performance marketing.

• Most corporate websites underperform.

• Despite this, there is an increasing investment across the board in SEO, SEM and expensive traffic generation strategies.

You have to perform.

• There is no excuse for poor performance; websites performance is a science, not an art.• There is no point in operating an under-performing website.• Every person who leaves is lost.

The keys to performance...

What is usability?

• Getting people to their destination, wherever they are in the buying cycle.

• The best website is not necessarily the best looking.

The ‘well lit’ path

• Identifying the key user journeys and destinations.• Lighting a path to their destination, calling them to make an action.

Removing roadblocks

• Real.• Emotional.• Making it readable.• Helping them move forward; they don’t know you, your website or where to go next. Preempt this.

Websites are Journeys not Books

• The benefits of making considered, recommendations on a corporate website is that it supports the user journey through the website.

• ‘Because you’re in NSW, view the stores closest to you...’

• ‘If this article helped you, meet the author...’

• ‘Based on what you’ve read, you should...’

Websites are Journeys not Books

How is it done?

1. Know where in the buying cycle the user is.

How is it done?

1. Consider what you would tell them in an offline sales scenario; what questions would they ask?

2. Be as geographical as possible.

3. Test different recommendations.

4. Look at your exit pages.

5. Support the user including getting offline.

How is it done?

1. Do not pick ‘Recommendations’ as a technology. Understand if it fits, and how it fits.

Do I have to write a logic engine?

• No.• Though if you do, consider very carefully your business rules and logic; these are expensive to rewrite.• Are there exceptions to the rule?• Will I get reporting?• Is there personal or historical data I can utilise? If they looked at a certain case-study, can I take something from that?

Not just eCommerce

• Making recommendations to users works across all websites:

• Blogs• Information sites• Portfolios• Transactional websites

The benefits

• Substantially improved website performance.

• Become the authority; gain trust. • Reduced support costs.• More page views.• Better user experience = goodwill.• Increased conversion rates.• Upsell.• Revenue.

The end.

• www.robertbeerworth.com• www.wiliam.com.au