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The Challenges of Marketing ThePowerMoves

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Quote from Matthew Whitewood on January 15, 2022, 5:46 am

I think it's the notion of power. People think that people who think about power are power hungry.

But if you told almost anyone that he can do anything he wishes to do, then he somehow views power positively. The word "empowerment" comes to mind.

That's a great point, thank you for sharing Matthew.

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Quote from Ali Scarlett on January 4, 2022, 12:41 am

Picking up from where I left off, here are a few of my thoughts on the lead magnet pop-up:

#1. Wait!

Grabs my attention, but my eyes are drawn to the next biggest, attention-grabber on the pop-up: Lucio.

And, while that image conveys Lucio and TPM's authority, it doesn't convey a WIIFM to wait.

So, the pop-up might be better if it's replaced with an image of the reason they should wait (a picture of the eBook, a mockup to represent the email course, etc.).

#2. Big Image of Lucio

Maybe I'd be more on board with it if I knew the reasoning behind it.

But, it feels like it'd be better suited for a sales page than a pop-up. Pop-ups are quick and the click-aways are quick, so I feel that each element should earn its way onto the pop-up.

And, right now, I don't see how this image helps influence visitors to take action. (Maybe if it said something like, "Let me mentor you for free with this popular course," it'd make more sense.)

Still, showing an image of the inside of the lead magnet would build conceptual fluency in the visitors and increase the chances of them taking the time to check out more of the pop-up.

#3. The Subtitle

Pop-Up: "This FREE course changed 4354 lives"

I like the "free" part, it underlines that they have more to gain and less to lose from grabbing the lead magnet.

The "4354 lives" looks like the "precise bid" tactic. And, Nick Kolenda calls it the "pique technique" under his "present your request in an odd manner" tactic where the oddly specific number snaps them out of heuristic processing (snaps them out of skimming over it) and makes them evaluate the message more carefully.

The problem is, when they're now in systematic processing — evaluating the message more carefully — they're not seeing the exact WIIFT. They see "changed XYZ lives," but how did their lives change?

They don't know, so they prefer to keep their personal information rather than giving it away to get...something.

So, better might be:

Pop-Up: "Join 4,354 students in this free course."

It gives one clear call-to-action to help move the reader quickly (the longer they stare at the page without taking action, the more they back-rationalize that it's because they don't want to take action due to cognitive dissonance), it keeps the precise number to grab their attention, and it leverages social proof.

And, I might keep the "free" in lowercase without the highlighter because now that you have their attention with the "Wait!" and the specific number, further "yelling" for their attention could come across as salesy or desperate.

#4. Description

Unfortunately, it doesn't feel like the description describes anything.

Pop-Up: "Give it a try, you might be next -and got nothing to lose-."

It says to give it a try, but why should they? What exactly are they getting?

The types of people TPM attracts are smart, driven people. So, if they're taking the time to evaluate this message, they're likely to feel that whatever this is, it would at the very least cost them their time to go through the lead magnet product — whatever it is.

So — and this might be hard-hitting — it sounds a bit manipulative to say they have "nothing to lose" because it's too easy for them to rationalize:

  • I don't have nothing to lose because if my contact info wasn't worth something, you wouldn't be asking for it: there are untrustworthy and salesy / market-y people hitting them with lead magnets vying for their contact info all the time
  • I don't have nothing to lose, except my time: they might think, "I'm going to have to invest time to figure out what this is and then more time to figure out if it's valuable to me."

So, if Lucio wanted to keep the current, description a better one might be:

Pop-Up: "Give it a try, you might be next — you've got little to lose and a lot of social success to gain."

The repeated use of "you" helps maintain their systematic processing because now the information feels like it pertains to them specifically (a part of Kolenda's "increase personal relevance" tactic).

The "little to lose" is more honest and the "lot of social success to gain" helps specify the WIIFT.

Personally, though, I might go for something like this:

Pop-Up: "Get this advanced guide on your social skills because it's science-backed, real-world tested, and proven to work by thousands of my students."

Here, it describes exactly what they get without wasting any time. And, it anchors expectations high for the incentive which draws up their perception of the incentive by labeling it as "advanced."

Then, it (1) uses the persuasive power of "because" (Kolenda calls it "providing a reason for your request" under "optimize your message") and it (2) gives reasons why they should follow your call-to-action with the "rule of three" (less than three reasons isn't persuasive enough and more than three feels like overselling, so studies show that only three reasons is the sweet spot).

#5. Submit Button

Small thing, but I'd probably make the "I" in "It" capitalized.

Due to the mere exposure effect (i.e. the "familiarity principle"), being exposed to familiar information repeatedly causes us to develop a liking for that information because it's more familiar (which feels good due to processing fluency).

So, repeatedly starting both the word "Send" and "It" with a capital letter can help influence visitors to like the button more (and the idea of pressing it :).

#6. Fine Print.

I like the message at the bottom that they can unsubscribe a lot.

The only change I'd make is to add a period at the end because it's "proper" written communication which helps with the authority of the person delivering the message.

And, as the old saying goes, "When people are responding to a message, they're responding to the message and the messenger."

Quick update on this:

Ali's suggestion seems to work.

It's 1.2% VS 1% on that time frame.

Probably it's not 20% more because as soon as new popups are installed they always get higher conversions (still wondering why, I think it's more faithful readers who see TPM's value and throw their email in anytime to see if there is anything new they haven't gotten yet).

But I think the last weeks still show a better performance (plus, we must keep in mind that I followed Ali's suggestions very quickly and not thoroughly).

So, thank you Ali!

I think that marketing might also be added to the many successful paths you may choose ahead of you :).

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Ali Scarlett
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Awesome to read this, Lucio! Thank you for sharing :).

Quote from Ali Scarlett on January 4, 2022, 2:59 pm

By the way, on the new lead magnet:

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on January 4, 2022, 5:04 am

 

#7. Conflicting Information

The new description says they'll get a course on social strategies, but the image shows an eBook on mindsets.

Calling it a "guide" helps avoid some of the confusion here.

And, I'm not sure UP is the best go-to image to use for this one because it's labeled as the "last self-development book they'll ever need."

And, when people think self-development, they often think "work" and "time" — which doesn't sound like a quick and easy solution.

#8. Contrasting Backgrounds

Can be good to separate extra information from the call-to-action (see "Create an Anchor & Divider for the Sales Page's Content").

In this case though, it separates the incentive image from all of the adjacent information — the same information the user needs to decide if they want to get the incentive at all.

So, to put this another way:

  1. UP's black background anchors the pop-up: which helps draw their attention to what's on it — the eBook. But, this influences prospects to avoid taking notice of the pop-up's other content (which is information they need in order to make their decision).
  2. UP's black background divides the pop-up: it divides the incentive information from the incentive image which makes them look even more separate and unrelated. And, that means that, for the prospect, clicking the "Send It" button will now seem harder (because their attention is being funneled to the pop-up's anchor which is visually separate from the pop-up's call-to-action).

So, the quick fix here would be to put the incentive image on a white background so it's visually grouped in with the adjacent information. Then, people will instinctively know that by clicking the "Send It" button, they're also getting the incentive that they see in the image.

As Kolenda says, "Visual design is supposed to reinforce conceptual design." And, in this case, putting everything on the same white background reinforces the concept of getting everything they see on the white background when they click "Send It."

A few ideas you can test:

#9. Switch the "WAIT!"

"Wait!" can cause a nonconscious response called "psychological reactance" where they instinctively choose to do the opposite as a knee-jerk reaction to keep their freedom.

So, something else you can try is "FREE!" to incentivize visitors to stop and keep reading.

#10. Design a Product Image

For the lead magnet.

Since it's a preview of Power University, that could look something like:

*Note: I think at some point I'll work on a proper image for the pop-up. These are only to illustrate the idea, I'm not sure they'd be good for conversions. (And, I have a better design in mind anyway :).

You'll also notice that these images rest on a white background so it's grouped with the rest of the pop-up's content (based on my feedback in #8).

Quote from Lucio Buffalmano on February 9, 2022, 12:15 pm

It's 1.2% VS 1% on that time frame.

Probably it's not 20% more because as soon as new popups are installed they always get higher conversions (still wondering why, I think it's more faithful readers who see TPM's value and throw their email in anytime to see if there is anything new they haven't gotten yet).

Yeah, my theory is that when people see the same pop-up two or more times they:

  • Slip into heuristic processing: skim it because they know they've seen it already and aren't expecting any new information or WIIFTs.
  • Are influenced by cognitive dissonance: they back-rationalize that if they didn't sign up the first time they saw it, it's because they didn't want it.

So, a brand new pop-up overcomes both of these challenges which boosts initial conversions until these two nonconscious influences kick in again.

Since the content at TPM stands head and shoulders above the rest though, I agree that it's the loyal readers and community here that also have something to do with it.

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Lucio Buffalmano

Boom again, thank you Ali, going to test one of those mock-ups now as well as the "free" letters.

I agree with you on the people who see the popup again, but slightly changed, very good reasoning there.

On the other hand, the impact of that is probably limited because the campaign is set to don't show again for 30 days, and I think that setting is cascaded to all the children versions.
So yes it probably plays a role, but probably not very big.

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Ali Scarlett
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Been giving more thought to the home page recently:

Right now, it feels like it's selling me the flagship course before I've had a chance to decide for myself whether or not I'm interested yet.

I could click to learn more and decide from there if I'm actually interested (based on the copy of PU's sales page). But, most of the sales seem to be coming from people who found TPM's content first, saw the value in it, and then joined PU because they decided they wanted more.

In other words, the quality of the content at TPM seems to be doing more selling than the sales pages.

So, what about a homepage like this:

My reasoning:

  • "The Power Moves": Shows that you've reached the home of the website, rather than a "light push" to get you to a sales page for the course
  • "Choose a path...Free Articles / Courses": Gives you the option to move toward free or paid content which de-emphasizes the persuasion because it provides conflicting information. Now, it seems less like "I'm trying to get you to the paid side of my website as fast as possible (by making the buttons for the course your only options to choose from)" and more like "Here are your options to explore the site (and all of the resources within it to get you to the top 1%, paid or not). It's up to you what path you choose".

Only brainstorming here, happy to exchange ideas with anyone who has thoughts on this.

Lucio Buffalmano has reacted to this post.
Lucio Buffalmano

Thank you Ali, always super useful.

I agree that the homepage might seem to jump the gun on pitching PU.

However, I think there is a premise here that's not necessarily true: that most people see the homepage first.

I think that people see the homepage after they're coming from an article (or more by following the links).

It's not: homepage -> pitch.

It's: article -> "interesting enough to check what this website is about" -> PU (or "how to get all of this wisdom in one fell swoop")

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Ali Scarlett
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Guys, I think I finally figured it out.

My theory on one major reason PU's sales copy feels so different from the rest of the website.

Here's an analogy:

You're in school.

At school, you've been learning all about social skills and having fun discovering things you wish you'd known sooner.

Your teacher spends every minute of every class giving you new insights regarding the social sciences that make your life better.

Then, one day, your teacher walks in, has everyone take their seats, and starts talking about himself.

For 10 minutes straight.

He talks about his journey, his story, and his personal experience creating a course outside of school that he'd love if his students joined.

He has some social capital and rapport with the students, so they were happy to hear his story. But, not many ended up enrolling.

Now, compare that to Teacher 2 who has the same situation and walks into class that same day, but with a different approach.

He starts talking not about himself, but about a school program that's the next step for those who want to pursue the path of becoming an effective social strategist. The school's official next level for those who want more than what they're going to get from his class.

Suddenly, it's not about the teacher and his "side project" that he's trying to pitch to his students in the hopes they'll buy. It's the value the students will get who already love his teachings and want more.

Another example:

Say you're in a standard french class with a french teacher. Who would you rather go with:

  • Teacher 1: In class, he pitches you the book he's been writing in his spare time that gives you no extra credit and seems cool, but is completely separate from the school's curriculum and foundation for learning.
  • Teacher 2: In class, he notifies you that enrollment is open for the school's Advanced Placement French program (which gives clear added benefits to your school journey/progression).

Most would rather go with Teacher 2.

Right now, PU is presented as "Lucio's course" when it might be more congruent with the rest of the site as "the official course of the Power Dynamics Institute".

So, I have the same attitude regarding copy that Lucio does and he mentioned that Blindsight is one of the best books he's read on influence/persuasion.

Recently, I headed to the authors' website to see their sales copy and it has the exact "this is a scientific program for driven high-achievers" feel I've been looking for.

Here's an example draft (skeleton):

Would love to hear you guys' thoughts on this!

Lucio Buffalmano, Mats G and leaderoffun have reacted to this post.
Lucio BuffalmanoMats Gleaderoffun

My thoughts are that...

I love this!

Had been thinking to change that salespage for a while, albeit I wasn't sure in which direction to take it.
Now I know thanks to you Ali.

BTW, great yet important little detail in using "Power Dynamics Institute", I'm surprised you know about that, I don't remember having mentioned that a whole lot, if at all.

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Ali Scarlett
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Really, amazing work Ali. This is world-class copywriting.

Maybe 'the promise of the course' is the section that I'd spend the most time iterating over.

Describing PU or Lucio is probably not that impactful because you can read the TOC of PU before buying, and by the time you get there you know full well who Lucio is. What you don't know so well is what results you can expect.

Some courses try to offer you something tangible: "get 3 dates after a month, or your money back" or somesuch. I think this is a good idea. Creating a vivid image of how life would be if you invest the time and money. Then the question in the buyer's mind is: is XXX (800 bucks in PU's case) worth it to get YYY (3 dates per week after a month of effort). If yes, then boom, sale is done.

My 2c. You guys know better, that's for sure 🙂

Lucio Buffalmano has reacted to this post.
Lucio Buffalmano

Thank you LOF, that's very helfpul!

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