Power University sales page feedback (Experimental): what do you think?

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on July 22, 2021, 6:14 am

Thank you so much, Ali!

This is super helpful.

Just some background info:

Tabs

The "tabs", it's a change I introduced from the old course, which was converting much better.

I think there are a few advantages, including:

• Showcases the unique & helpful curriculum: there are so many life-relevant lessons that nobody else tackles properly (Machiavellianism, frame control, body language of submission/aggression, etc.) that I feel it's both informational, and sales-generating
• Material section showcases the add-ons: they have a clickable link, but the link opens a "sign-up now" newsletter. That was a test to see if it could be generate sign-ups. Plus act as a teaser/enticer. It was a test / experiment and I might remove it going forward
• Reviews: there are some in the sales page, but having everything pulled into one makes the impact stronger
• Author: maybe useful for first-timers on the website. But it might be the least needed indeed. Also because by now PU has a lot of community-generated wisdom and strategies baked into it (something I will mention there actually)

They all have the "join now" button, so there is a ready-converter for those who feel ready.

BUT... 5 tabs might be too cluttered indeed. Especially on mobile.

For all the rest that you say: thank you so much!
Super helpful, and the "help people imagine being inside the course" is something that I added now to my to-do list.

Quote from Matthew Whitewood on July 22, 2021, 9:12 am

Salesy Vibes of Sales Page

There is something about the sales page that comes across as a bit incongruent with the other parts of the website.
Maybe I'm pointing out the obvious but the sales page comes across as salesy.

The other parts of the website have a "pull" vibe.
Like it attracts people because the knowledge is insightful, and we would like to read more.

The sales page has a "push" vibe.
Here are the benefits, what you are getting out of it, etc.

For example, this portion of the sales page feels a bit "guru-like":

The next step is on you.

Truly become the YOU that you have always dreamt being and put your life in the direction you choose.

You have the power to do that right now right at your very fingertips.

Why spend the time thinking about it and wanting that better life that someone you know already has?
Make it your life! Do it now!
We only have so little time, so spend it making your dreams come true!

Make your dreams a REALITY!

Imagine yourself in the future after you’ve taken this course and what you would say to yourself right now, the sense of urgency kicks in, that’s why you need to join Power University now!

Join and find out for yourself and change your life to the way you want it!

But I'm a single data point giving feedback.
I'm not sure if this feedback resonates with others.

Sometimes sales is a means to an end.
Just do whatever gets the best numbers.

Open Up A Quiz in the Preview of Power University?

Linking the relevant discussion on putting a quiz on the home page:
Putting a Quiz on the Homepage to Show How Power Dynamics Relates in Daily Situations

Ali and Lucio just sparked an idea in my mind.
Maybe instead of putting the quiz on the home page which may take more technical work, maybe one could open up one of the quizzes in Power University as part of the preview.
A quiz would be more interactive.

I think the Social Exchange Quiz would give a pretty good preview.
However, I'm not sure if that would be giving too much away.
If the quiz is put on the top and in the preview, one could say

See how good you are at spotting imbalanced social exchanges.
Then, come back after the lessons and take the quiz again.

One could create another quiz and put it right at the top of Power University to get people to measure how good their power dynamics is.
Then put the answers to the questions to show them the different angles that they missed out on.

This could go hand-in-hand with the quiz idea on the other thread.
Crowdsourcing Forum Examples for Quizzes

Wild Guess at SEO

I think sometimes people face SEO issues after revamping their website.
Google somehow ends up indexing their site less for whatever reason.
It's a hit or miss thing.

But I'm putting this possibility out here without any concrete information or analysis to back this up.

Maybe this is a slightly different issue from the sales page as I'm not sure if google searches would lead to the sales page directly.

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on July 22, 2021, 1:10 pm

Quote from Matthew Whitewood on July 22, 2021, 9:12 am

Salesy Vibes of Sales Page

For example, this portion of the sales page feels a bit "guru-like":

The next step is on you.

Truly become the YOU that you have always dreamt being and put your life in the direction you choose.

You have the power to do that right now right at your very fingertips.

Why spend the time thinking about it and wanting that better life that someone you know already has?
Make it your life! Do it now!
We only have so little time, so spend it making your dreams come true!

Make your dreams a REALITY!

Imagine yourself in the future after you’ve taken this course and what you would say to yourself right now, the sense of urgency kicks in, that’s why you need to join Power University now!

Join and find out for yourself and change your life to the way you want it!

Thank you, Matthew!

Might be one of those examples of sunk-cost fallacy.
That was one of the last bits that I hadn't deleted from a copywriter I had initially hired.

After having invested in that project, I probably wanted to keep some of it just not to feel like it was all wasted.

The rest of the page is quite "salesy" indeed and not very in line with the rest of the website.
Since it was working "good enough" though and testing something completely new would require a lot of time, I'm not going to change too much it for now.

Maybe later on though it will be very interesting to test something more rational and sober.

That part you highlighted was "too much" though even for a salesy sale page indeed, and now I removed it.

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on July 22, 2021, 1:14 pm

Quote from Ali Scarlett on July 22, 2021, 3:26 am

In reality, prospects only need the course info (the other tabs can be left out):

 

Removed the author box now, thank you Ali!

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on July 22, 2021, 6:17 pm

Quote from Ali Scarlett on July 22, 2021, 3:26 am

Make the Course Sales Page More Minimal to Avoid Distracting Prospects with "Too Much Content"

Making the course's sales page more minimal helps prospects focus on what's most important—the buying decision.

And, one way to make the sales page more minimal is with toggles.

Kolenda uses them here:

And, Lucio can use them as well by turning these benefits into toggles:

Keeping these "out of the way" makes the buying decision easier because it helps the prospect avoid getting distracted. And, there's no need to delete them, Lucio can simply toggle them away for the user's discretion.

---

I'll see about sharing Kolenda's tips on "pricing" soon.

And done this too for the content.

Might add a few tabs for "FAQs" now.

Thank you Ali!

Quote from Ali Scarlett on July 22, 2021, 6:28 pm

Place the Course Name Beside the Start Button

"Visual design is supposed to reinforce conceptual design." - Kolenda

Kolenda loves this technique, and to apply it PU's sales page, one of the goals would be to use the visual design of the sales page to reinforce the concept of joining the PU course (in order to elicit more conceptual fluency in the prospects).

Kolenda does this by placing his "Start Course" button beside his course's name/title:

That way, people who visit the sales page intuitively know that, if they click the "Start Course" button, they'll be starting a course on Sales Psychology.

And, the same can be replicated at the bottom of the current PU sales page (more on that a little later).

Create an Anchor & Divider for the Sales Page's Content

When people visit Kolenda's Sales Psychology course sales page, they immediately know where to look because their eyes first give attention to the noticeable grey section:

That greyed section helps draw attention to what's on it—the course name and start button. This helps prospects avoid getting distracted by the page's other content.

Another benefit of this grey background is that it doubles as a divider because it divides the "Start Course" button from the sales page information.

Here's an example of that same page without the grey divider/background:

As Kolenda put it, "Without this grey section, users would group this ["start course"] button and all of this other information right below it. And, naturally, the button would consume less of their attention because it would be competing with this adjacent information."

Using a grey section to separate the course information from the course's start button will funnel more attention to the course's start button. And, that means that for the prospect, clicking the button will now seem easier.

Guide Eyes to the Course's "Start Button"

That's why, in addition to drawing eyes toward the button using the grey background, Kolenda put a white arrow:

And, that helps direct even more attention to the course's start button, making it easier to click.

And, again, as Kolenda put it, "If this action seems easier to do, then users will be more likely to do it."

Here's a quick example of what I mean:

Hopefully, if Lucio went this route, it would be better designed. But, other benefits of this design include:

• The grey background and downward arrow also separate the "start" button from the price, so clicking the button doesn't feel like a cost.
• The downward arrow also leverages the "drive their momentum" technique, where they've been scrolling down the page and now are directed to the final step further down at the bottom of the page. This way, they feel an intrinsic motivation to finish what they've started (in this case, by enrolling).

And, on that downward arrow's intrinsic motivation effect, Kolenda notes that Amazon does the same thing, and it's very persuasive:

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*Note: BTW, a little side note here for anyone who's curious, mentioning that Amazon uses this technique could actually de-persuade Lucio to use it because of the similarity effect. If Lucio consciously or non-consciously thinks to himself that Amazon is not at all similar to TPM he could, as a result, conclude that the technique would be of no use to him. And, that could lead him to throw away an adjustment that could have a major, positive impact on the persuasiveness of his sales page—all because I mentioned another brand/business as an example when I didn't have to.

That's why, I'm not here to convince Lucio (of course, all decisions are entirely up to him), I'm only here to share what changes Kolenda might recommend. And, in the course, Kolenda was enthusiastic about including arrows and driving momentum.

---

Now, we move on to another recommended change that I'm not fully convinced of yet:

Make the Color of the Prices Red

Kolenda says, "If both colors [the price and the start button] were the same [color green], then users would group these two elements."

E.g.

Kolenda continues, "I chose opposite colors on the color spectrum to add contrast between these elements. More visual distinction will signify more conceptual distinction. Plus, research shows that prices can seem cheaper in red fonts, so there might be additional benefits."

So, in other words, as a result of the contrast in colors, clicking the green start button doesn't feel like a cost because the button appears to have nothing to do with whatever else is on the page (assuming green isn't used anywhere else on that page). So, that green button looks like a completely separate commitment from the opposite colored, red price.

Still not quite sure on this one from Lucio's previous thoughts on how to use psychology to market effectively.

Put the Price Differences Next to Each Other (Or, At Least, Closer Together)

Here's how Kolenda does it:

And, on this, he says, "I also placed a large number on the left [the $250]. It's called the subtraction principle. You can subtract numbers more easily when larger numbers appear on the left. And, this fluency makes the difference between these prices seem larger [which is good because people want to know they're getting a great deal]."

So, in short, if Lucio wants to make the current price appear smaller in comparison to the other price he has on that page, he should put the numbers beside each other.

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*Note: Another quick note, it's also important to avoid putting them too close together. Kolenda mentions that "more visual space will seem like more numerical space" (i.e. give the two numbers some actual, visual room between each other and it will emphasize the numerical room between them).

If anyone's unsure of how all this is persuasive, check out the contrast bias.

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Make the Price Look Visually Lighter

Kolenda does this by adding a dark section to the bottom of his sales information section:

And, he mentions that the dark section reinforces the upward nature of that top section (which makes it seem lighter) because it has a tangible bottom to it.

This is what the price looks like without that reinforcement:

It looks like it's all the same weight, a missed opportunity to make the bottom seem heavier and the top (where the price is) lighter.

So, the PU sales page could have its own sales information box similar to Kolenda's.

Another option would be to do what Kolenda does in his sales proposals and make the surrounding content bolded while the price maintains a regular look.

E.g.

• 6,997   797

Avoid Conditioning People to Wait for Discounts

If people still don't like the price, unless the necessary steps are taken, prospects could be consciously/nonconsciously conditioned by Lucio's sales page to wait for discounts.

How Kolenda avoids this is with the principle of urgency. Notice how in the darker section of his sales box he writes, "Price will increase to $XYZ on XYZ date."

That encourages people to avoid waiting for a discount and take action sooner rather than later. It also makes that discounted rate that gets the strikethrough (currently $6,997) seem like a real number that, in the future, could eventually happen.

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Here's an example of what some of those changes might look like:

Notes:

• The "Don't be the guy waiting while life passes you by" has been placed on a black background to serve as an anchor so that the numbers (prices) below it seem lighter.
• The "Click the button below..." instructions text has been enlarged so that the visual size of the numbers don't seem as big in comparison (and, therefore, the prices no longer seem as big either)
• The crossed-out price is bolded to make the current price seem lighter. And, the date of the next price increase is also bolded to make the crossed-out price seem more real.
• The start button has been renamed "start now" to imply immediate access once the button is clicked, leading to more people feeling that joining is easy
• The name of the course is placed right underneath the start button for more conceptual fluency and follows the downward momentum of "once you click this button the next (and final) step is: you'll be in Power University, congratulations, you've reached the end of our journey together through the sales page"
• All other changes are already noted above

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My next post in this thread will likely be transitioning into Kolenda's feedback on PU's sales copy.

Quote from Ali Scarlett on July 22, 2021, 9:48 pm

Adapt PU's Sales Copy to PU's Hierarchy of Benefits

Kolenda pulled this approach from Consumer Behavior in Action, written by his college professor, Geoffrey P. Lantos.

"Every product has a hierarchy of benefits." - Kolenda

E.g. A camera:

Mapping out a product's hierarchy starts with beginning at the bottom (by writing the features of your product) and working your way to the top. In this case, Kolenda's process for drawing out the hierarchy of benefits for a camera was:

1. Features: One feature is an F-Stop of 2.8.
2. Benefits: With that feature, you can blur more of the background, allowing the subject to pop out on camera.
3. Functional (Benefits): When you make the subject pop, the photos themselves look better.
4. Experiential/Symbolic Benefits: If you're using the camera for family purposes, then you'll capture better memories.
5. Instrumental Values: If you buy a camera to take pictures of your child, then you're being a good parent. It shows how much you love your child.
6. Terminal Values: If you feel like a good parent, then you grow closer to your child.

So, I tried my hand at mapping out PU's hierarchy:

1. Features: One feature is the course modules and lessons on power.
2. Benefits: With those course modules and lessons, you can transfer all of its information and knowledge on power to yourself.
3. Functional (Benefits): When you make that transfer, you achieve more power / become more powerful.
4. Experiential/Symbolic Benefits: When you become more powerful, then you achieve all of the social benefits that come with that power.
5. Instrumental Values: When you receive those social benefits, more opportunities are opened up to you, including the opportunity to build your own high-quality social life and network.
6. Terminal Values: If you decide to create that high-quality social life, then you develop more life satisfaction.

The instrumental values can change and vary. For example, instead of the instrumental value of building your own high-quality network with your newfound power, for you, it could be traveling the world. And, that would still lead to that terminal value of life satisfaction.

Either way, now that one example PU hierarchy has been outlined, we would start our copywriting for the sales page from the top of the hierarchy and work our way down.

This is an example using some of Kolenda's words:

1. Anecdote: Share a relatable anecdote in which you experience life dissatisfaction and how that situation feels and any negative emotions that result from it.
2. Simulation of Outcome: Get the reader to imagine how their life would be if they had a high-quality social life or if they had a high-quality network
3. Importance of Power: How can they achieve this outcome? Well, they only need to learn how to acquire more power. It all boils down to your skills in power dynamics. That's the only thing standing in their way.
4. Videos Will Grow Your Power: So, how can they accomplish this? Well, Lucio has spent XYZ years studying power dynamics, and he compiled all of this knowledge into these videos.
5. Conclusion: Watch these videos in order to improve your power, you'll start to build high-quality relationships, and achieve more life satisfaction (consider also closing out with an anecdote of experiencing the opposite of the negative event that caused life dissatisfaction).

And, as Kolenda says, "So, this structure, moving from the top of the hierarchy to the bottom of the hierarchy, fits exactly with how our brain makes decisions. Our brain moves from broad (life satisfaction / power) to concrete (knowledge / videos)."

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*Note: I feel that "power" is way too general to be used for effective copy. That's probably a large part of why the previous copywriter's work had such a guru-like feel to it. Having no specifics to work from left the copywriter with little to work with. So, he generalized his copy to appeal to everyone (e.g. "Make your dreams a reality!") which gave it the feel of a guru speaking to everyone.

There was little personalization for the audience as individuals on that part of the sales page because it was almost as if Lucio had begun to speak to a group from a stage.

So, as part of getting specific and adding that personalization, a feature to start from probably wouldn't be course modules / lessons on power. More deep, would be course modules/lessons on frame control, manipulation, body language, and so on—each module receiving its own hierarchy.

Building off of those specifics can lead to more persuasive copy because everything is clear (simply using the general benefit of power leaves too much to be skepticized). And, creating hierarchies for each subject creates tailored copy for specific individuals interested in a specific topic, instead of whole groups.

A similar example of generalizations hurting persuasiveness this way is in a study that Kolenda shared:

Kolenda: "In another study, people preferred an insurance plan that covered death by terrorism more than an insurace policy that covered death by any reason. Even though the second plan covered any reason, including terrorism, people ironically found it less appealling. When you leave it open-ended like that, people have trouble generating an internal image or example of a particular use of your product [the fluency of consumption imagery / conceptual fluency]...People judge the likelihood of an event by judging how easily images of that event enter their mind. The more easily people can imagine using your product [in the real world to benefit their life], the more appealing your product will become. And, you can achieve that by giving people specific and realistic uses of your product."

Giving people specific and realistic uses of a course on power is difficult because "power" is so general.

But, for example, it's far easier to do with a course on frame control.

P.S.:

We already started to illustrate the practical, real-life applications of PU (power) with this thread.

Quote from Ali Scarlett on July 23, 2021, 3:51 am

Invent a Numerical Specification

Kolenda: "Research shows that people experience a nonconscious preference for attributes represented by a numerical value...so when selling your product, try to tangibilize an important, abstract concept into a numerical value. In one study, researchers give the example of a 'crispness index' for biscuits."

Research/Study: "...[for] situations in which there is not yet a popularly known quantitative specification, marketers can invent one and popularize it. For instance, makers of crispy biscuits could create and popularize a 'crispness index', use it to compare their products against their competitors' products, and feature the comparisons prominently on their websites and on their products." (Hsee et al., 2009)

Sounds like a good reason to consider giving the power quotient concept its own numerical value for others to use.

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That's it for right now on what Kolenda would recommend from his Sales Psychology course.

He has some other resources that expand further, maybe they'd be worth taking a look (e.g. I picked up his book The Psychology of Copywriting and took a peak, so far it's been well worth it).

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on July 23, 2021, 8:00 am

Wow, man, there is too much value in this thread.

It should be illegal to have this much gold for free.

I've already implemented some of it and will work on implementing more.

"Thank you so much" feels like it's not enough here, but... Thank you so much Ali, I'm super grateful.