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The major factor in increasing the user base is offering a great service. I know it sounds bloody obvious but at the moment your site will loose most of the fist time visitors. So the more you bring the more you will loose forever.
There is a number of stumbling blocks for the new visitors:
The great service starts with a simple and new-user oriented flow. Not with a 'account signup' :)
Homepage elements should be presented in a way which quickly explains the concept and allows for an instant try. Not with a movie or how it works page.
One liner should explain the service and emphasise a benefit and a value. Not talk about 'online marketplace', 'connecting' and 'communities'.
I know you asked how to bring more people but my advice would be not to bring more visitors until your site is good enough to convert them and keep them as users.
--
Michael ANDRE
web strategist & user experience architect
about.me
webCardinals.com
NEW: Faces are dangerous.
www.tellmeyoudidnt.com
There is a number of stumbling blocks for the new visitors:
- One needs to sign up for an account (invite in beta) just to see/try the service. Detailed explanation here: bit.ly
- Prospect Angel has to fill a killer signup form. More here: bit.ly
- The only way to learn about the service is by watching a lengthy and slightly boring movie. More here: bit.ly
The great service starts with a simple and new-user oriented flow. Not with a 'account signup' :)
Homepage elements should be presented in a way which quickly explains the concept and allows for an instant try. Not with a movie or how it works page.
One liner should explain the service and emphasise a benefit and a value. Not talk about 'online marketplace', 'connecting' and 'communities'.
I know you asked how to bring more people but my advice would be not to bring more visitors until your site is good enough to convert them and keep them as users.
--
Michael ANDRE
web strategist & user experience architect
about.me
webCardinals.com
NEW: Faces are dangerous.
www.tellmeyoudidnt.com
1
You are in a private beta, which means if I got to your website I can't actually do anything except request an invitation (which I did yesterday and didn't hear anything back) or fill out a very long form asking to be a TaskAngel (to do work). So immediately there are a number of barriers for anyone who did hear about you through the marketing activities you mention above (blog, Facebook, and classified ads).
My answer is different depending on the real objective you are trying to achieve by engaging more users. So, I'll go into each one a little bit:
Is the objective is to get more users to your website to signup for the private beta? Then before you do that, I suggest getting out of private beta or at least make it easier for people to join. If you don't then any user you do get to your site will never come back because they couldn't experience things the first time.
Or is the objective to get a handful of people to connect for TaskAngel projects so that you can work out any issues in the process in your private beta? Then you need to engage these type of friendly users with much more direct face-to-face marketing. You don't need blogs, Facebook or anything else you do through a computer (except maybe email) to recruit these users.
This advice definitely doesn't provide a new whiz-bang solution to getting a ton of users and growing quick... because, at least in my experience starting Whinot, that solution doesn't exist. I hope this does help you think about what you are really trying to accomplish right now by getting more users. Let's talk about it more if you are interested.
My answer is different depending on the real objective you are trying to achieve by engaging more users. So, I'll go into each one a little bit:
Is the objective is to get more users to your website to signup for the private beta? Then before you do that, I suggest getting out of private beta or at least make it easier for people to join. If you don't then any user you do get to your site will never come back because they couldn't experience things the first time.
Or is the objective to get a handful of people to connect for TaskAngel projects so that you can work out any issues in the process in your private beta? Then you need to engage these type of friendly users with much more direct face-to-face marketing. You don't need blogs, Facebook or anything else you do through a computer (except maybe email) to recruit these users.
This advice definitely doesn't provide a new whiz-bang solution to getting a ton of users and growing quick... because, at least in my experience starting Whinot, that solution doesn't exist. I hope this does help you think about what you are really trying to accomplish right now by getting more users. Let's talk about it more if you are interested.
f...@mytaskangel.co.uk commented on 09 Mar 2012
Thanks for your advice. We are looking for both. The objective is to keep both providers and users engaged and attract more sign ups.
Thanks for highlighting issues with users signing up to the landing page. The site will launch to the public late march but we need users to try the beta site to ensure the process is smooth and user friendly. Let me know what you think of the beta site.
Thanks for your advice. We are looking for both. The objective is to keep both providers and users engaged and attract more sign ups.
Thanks for highlighting issues with users signing up to the landing page. The site will launch to the public late march but we need users to try the beta site to ensure the process is smooth and user friendly. Let me know what you think of the beta site.
0
Chris J Gallant advised on 06 Apr 2012
"International Consultant in the IT field, specializing in the development of concepts into real businesses."
I agree with both Kyle and Michael, and if I uinderstand your product correctly you may want to look at www.zaarly.com which has been around for a while doing similar if not exactly what you are doing.
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Chris J Gallant advised about 1 year ago
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Michael ANDRE advised about 1 year ago
The major factor in increasing the user base is offering a g...
The major factor in increasing the user base is offering a g...
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Hi Michael, thanks a lot for the detailed feedback on the current landing page. The illustrations are fantastic. It has given us food for thoughts on how we can improve the current user flow. Please take a look at the main beta landing page, www.mytaskangel.co.uk and let me know what you think.