Why do Ugly Pages Convert Better?

Steven Carl Kelly

16 years ago

Would you mind linking us to the good/bad pages for comparison?

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Mike Montgomery

16 years ago

It's pretty simple really.

Because all those goofy funky images distract
people.

There are way to many options to catch there
eye.

Originally Posted by Re-cycle

I want to know the reason why ugly pages convert so much better than "professional" looking pages. I have tested this with some of my products and its so true. One example is a product website I own and tested it with a lot of cute images, graphics... the works.... and the other one i simply put the ebook cover, and the text, Nothing else! converting like crazy! why?

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Steve Taylor 16 years ago

Cause there's more ugly people than good looking people...you have to adapt

-Steve
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- Cali16 16 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Steve Taylor
  
  Cause there's more ugly people than good looking people...you have to adapt
  
  -Steve
  
  LOL! Too funny! So, is the theory that there are more ugly buyers, and they relate better to the ugly sales pages?
  
  Thanks
  
  1 reply
  
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  Peter Burke 16 years ago
  
  Hi everyone
  
  Chris was right when he says text sells.
  
  I do agree that 'less professional looking' sites seem to sell well.
  
  The first mini site I put up - did well and continues to do well and when I really started to put the effort into a really cool 'looking' site - fewer sales - so did a test.
  
  I found that there is a strong relationship between the graphics used, layout and text. But the text proved to be the most important by far!!
  
  It sometimes pays to put up two or more index pages and try and see!
  
  Pete
  
  Thanks
  
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- Clark 16 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Steve Taylor
  
  Cause there's more ugly people than good looking people...you have to adapt
  
  -Steve
  
  hahaha... love it!
  
  Thanks
  
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sheryll

16 years ago

maybe because people think 'ugly' pages are created by everyday people who are not professionals and their opinions are less biased.

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TheRichJerksNet

16 years ago

Yeah good question .. I have a few clients and staff members that tell me all the time ..

"Why do all marketing websites look the same, when I see one then I run as fast as possible to some other site"

James

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Chris Lockwood

16 years ago

The simple answer is that words sell, not graphics.

Graphics might grab attention or do other things, but it's the words that sell.

That's why copywriters charge a little more than graphics designers.

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Shannon Herod

16 years ago

It's pretty simple really.

Because all those goofy funky images distract
people.

You are right on point Mike.

Fancy graphics often distract from your sales message. The reason why most people's graphics do not convert as well as sites without graphics, is they do not put any thought into them.

They tell the designer to make it look cool and that is all they do.

You need to really put some thought into your graphics if you want them to convert well.

Shannon

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Bakai

16 years ago

"Professional" looking pages are perceived as affiliate sites, and automatically creates skepticism, while "ugly' blogs and so forth create the image of a real person giving his honest review of a product.

"Professionally written" text reads, "blah blah balh" while readers will actually pay attention to what a "normal" person writes about the same product.

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Adam Kenzington

16 years ago

You ask "Why do ugly websites convert better than the slick, catchy ones?

Because they have to. Others have made the good point that slick graphic-rich sites are distracting. True. But, when you are making a site and don't have those "crutches" to rely on, you put more effort into the copy, itself, because that's all you've got. I think you concentrate on the "selling effect" and not the "Wow" effect.

I'm a big believer in persuasive, lead you by the hand, straight from the attention-grabbing headline, right to the "Here's what I want you to do" call to action. You get that part right and it will out convert the slickest, most eye-catching website out there.

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Steve Taylor

16 years ago

Originally Posted by Adam Kenzington

You ask "Why do ugly websites convert better than the slick, catchy ones?

I'm a big believer in persuasive, lead you by the hand, straight from the attention-grabbing headline, right to the "Here's what I want you to do" call to action. You get that part right and it will out convert the slickest, most eye-catching website out there.

Great point Adam. So simple in theory but often overlooked.

cheers,

Steve

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Josh Anderson

16 years ago

We must remember that "ugly" means lacking a fancy template and a bunch of graphics.

There are lots of ugly sites that are truly ugly and don't convert.

In fact when I see a site with really bad graphics... like the crummiest looking ebook covers etc... they instantly give me a feeling of lack of credibility.

In those cases it would be far better had they used no graphic at all.

"Because all those goofy funky images distract
people."

The simple answer is that words sell, not graphics.

That about sums it up.

Give me a killer headline over a fancy header graphic any day of the week.

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Kelly Verge

16 years ago

With one (non-IM) squeeze page I have, in every split test, the simpler page outperformed. After much pruning, my "final" page has a "grab your free copy" headline, an ebook cover, and a basic opt-in form.

They didn't want to see anything else - not even benefits.

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DavidO

16 years ago

I don't agree with your premise. It depends on what you're selling, who you're selling to and what you mean by ugly.

Simple pages convert better, I agree. But if you're saying that amateur, unprofessional sites convert better it's not true in my niche. I sell a health product and my conversion has increased as my site has become more professional looking.

But professional does not mean littered with distracting graphics. My site is simple and super clean, like you'd want anything associated with medicine to be. And it's professional looking because I need to inspire confidence.

My idea of ugly is screaming red headlines, a cheesy looking header and other tipoffs that shout "sales letter". This is a total turnoff in my niche where clean and professional sells, not ugly.

Of course with any of these comparisons I'm assuming good copy because that's the one thing that does definitely sell.

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Adam Carn

16 years ago

When I was starting out in IM many years ago, I read somewhere that ugly pages convert better than professional looking ones (I forgot the guru). Being a designer I didn't really like that statement but I tried ugly pages as well as good looking ones. I tested them both.

Conclusion:

It depends on the target market. You can probably sell a $5 - $20 "Stupid Student Spendings" guide by a student to students with an ugly sales page but you won't be able to sell a $97 "Millionaire Membership Mania" by a millionaire with an ugly page. It just wouldn't be believable. It would be unprofessional and uncharacteristic.

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Adam

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Tony_D

16 years ago

As many have said, it's partly because the "ugly" pages keep the viewer focused on the MESSAGE. All that highlighting and big obnoxious text, it's eye-catching. A fluid site with good graphics and a fancy interface is almost too "fun" to just play with. You don't need to buy anything, you're entertained by the site itself.

Another reason is because non-IM'ers can't tell the difference. They see an ugly page with an offer relating to something they might want to buy and they either

A) don't notice the page is ugly
B) don't care the page is ugly

It's the same line of reasoning as why non-IM'ers are less affected by cloaked links. Non-IM'ers don't know what an affiliate link is, so if they come across one it doesn't set off any warning sirens in their brain.

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DavidO

16 years ago

In addition to my first comment I would add that people are sometimes put off by the faceless "corporate" type website and relate more to the personal touch. So if you call the corporate look professional you may be right that ugly sells better, because it's the opposite of all the corporate image.

But you can still also have a sales page with a warm, personal touch while also looking professional and I think that will always sell best.

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Ben Roy

16 years ago

I think many people have the mistaken notion that scattering random pictures and graphics all over your page somehow makes it nicely designed. This is not the case at all.

A professionally designed salespage that is very sharp design-wise could have no images at all, other than those needed for the actual layout (curved edges, shadows, etc). It's not about how many blinking graphics you can fit on the page.

Most of the time when people think they are improving their page by adding images, they are just making it uglier.