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Dallas/Fort Worth Search Engine Marketing Association

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Brains, Science, and Conversion Collide at NOAH’S Event Center

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Roger Dooley Plus New Venue Equals Huge Hit

DFWSEM February meeting 1

NOAH’S Event Center – great space to enjoy appetizers and drinks before meetings

We decided on a change of scenery for February’s DFWSEM meeting and inadvertently propelled our monthly gatherings to a whole new level of excitement!

NOAH’S Event Center at 2251 N Greenville Ave. is our new meeting home just a few blocks north of the previous venue. Walking into NOAH’S immediately brings with it a huge hit of Silicon Valley vibe. The entire venue is unmistakably conducive to networking with like-minded marketers.

The main room resembles an auditorium, complete with lighting, stage, and A/V equipment.  Easily capable of accommodating 200 or more attendees, the room provides plenty of space for DFWSEM meetings to grow. 105 members and guests were all smiles as we also discovered desktop settings allowing for laptops and easy note-taking.

Across the hall the welcoming atmosphere continues with a room ideal for enjoying drinks, appetizers, and pizza. The perfect setting for casual conversation before and after the presentation.

A major benefit of NOAH’S is the ability to provide free drinks for DFWSEM members and guests. As an added bonus, management at the event center offer amazing flexibility, allowing us to have sponsors provide food and drinks through outside caterers.

Parking at NOAH’S is plentiful, making for trouble-free attendance. Overall, this new venue quickly revealed itself to be the complete package.

Let us know in the comments what you think of NOAH’S Event Center as the future home of DFWSEM meetings. (Did I mention free drinks?)

14 Science Based Ways to Convert More Customers

Roger Dooley speaking about how brain science affects conversions at February DFWSEM meeting

Roger Dooley speaking about how brain science affects conversions

Roger Dooley, author of the best-selling book Brainfluence delivered a fun, interesting, and fact-filled presentation, easily enthralling the audience with his understanding of online customer engagement.

Real-world examples made the subject seem easy as Roger uncovered the mystery of “brain science.” The atmosphere in the room was electric as he explained why certain subtle cues affect the buying decisions our customers make.

Even for those who would say science is not their thing, it was fascinating to learn how much of our customers’ decision-making process is affected by non conscious factors and how they affect conversions. We chose a few highlights from Roger’s presentation to share with you:

The Power of the Nudge

People often need to be prodded into action. Want more customers to shop in your store? Sales and discounts may be the motivating factor for many of your customers.

Roger illustrated this with the example of JC Penney stores: A former CEO went against the grain by doing away with big sales and instead focused on “everyday low pricing.” The strategy backfired and in a matter of months revenue tanked so drastically the retailer was almost driven into bankruptcy. For JC Penney customers, no price discount signal means no motivation to shop.

Our Brains Evolved to Listen to Stories

Even before the time when cavemen sat around campfires telling stories about hunting mastodon, people have loved stories. In fact, recent advances in medical technology have made it possible to see our brains actually light up when we listen to stories.

Testimonials are also a form of storytelling. When real customers provide earnest reviews of a product or service, they’re really telling a story about their true life experience which provides a powerful form of social validation.

Decoy Marketing

Roger talked about an upcoming movie called The DUFF . The Designated Ugly Fat Friend is about the lead character using decoy marketing in their social life. The premise of the movie is that those who want to be the center of attention should  surround themselves with two or three less attractive friends.
As Roger pointed out, this premise actually works in product pricing. A less attractive offer will boost sales of a similar offer. When given the choice between a high-priced product, a moderately priced option, and one on the lower end,  people are more likely to choose the middle option.

Scarcity Prompts Decision-Making and Sales

Offers with limited availability or that expire in a short time period also prod the customer into feeling afraid they might miss out on something. These types of offers create a sense of urgency.

Creative Choices as Non Conscious Motivators

Creative decisions made when designing your web site also affect the way people respond to offers. Roger highlighted a number of things to consider when developing or reviewing design elements.

  • Color choices
  • Less is more: Use “$1000” vs “$1,000.00”
  • Font choices
  • Psychological influences

Give Them an ‘Easy Button’

Roger delivered the bombshell of the evening at this point, revealing that four trillion dollars was lost to shopping cart abandonment in 2014. Friction is the reason these trillions of dollars were lost. Remove as much friction as possible. Online retailers make it too difficult for customers to order.  Amazon is the master of a near-zero friction website and ordering process. To put it simply, “If it’s not motivation, it’s friction.”

Friction: Is this action worth the time, money and effort lost to get what I want?

Again, designers can help by creating auto-fill forms and eliminating other high friction issues, such as:

  • long complicated forms
  • too many form fields
  • demands for super strong passwords
  • no-reply email addresses in email newsletters
  • disappearing form info
DFWSEM February Meeting-super strong passwords

How strong are your password demands? How strong do they really need to be?

He also provided simple tips on how to alleviate friction:

  • Make it easy and simple
  • Is it easy to read?
  • Use discretion with your use of images

Change is constant and accelerating…except for the human brain

Roger wrapped up with free gifts for everyone in the audience before everyone showed their appreciation for his great presentation.
Be sure to grab the free goodies from Roger at www.rogerdooley.com/dfwsem.

Pizza and Drinks With Friends Old and New

Laurie Shook and Christine Churchil enjoy pizza and a chat during post-presentation networking.

Laurie Shook and Christine Churchil enjoy pizza and a chat during post-presentation networking.

The mood was light as everyone returned to the networking space across the hall for free pizza and drinks to finish up the night. As members and guests enjoyed the DFWSEM hospitality, old friends happily caught up and new connections were made. One familiar face among the crowd was Pubcon Lead Moderator Joe Laratro. Joe is a long-time friend of DFWSEM members and flew in specially for the meeting.

Our February meeting was a wonderful success and as you’ll see below, positive reviews are still flowing. The #DFWSEM hashtag is brimming with takeaways from Roger Dooley’s presentation and the free drink tickets for before and after networking were a definite hit with everyone who attended.

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Survey Results

February 2015 DFWSEM Meeting Survey Results