Landing Page Makeover Clinic #5: HireAHelper.com

Today’s makeover is for Mike Glanz. He’s looking to energize and increase his ROI for his site, HireAHelper. This site is all about finding local help for lawns, moving, cleaning, and the other kinds of chores that are necessary but a drag and drain on most busy homeowners.

Unlike high-priced companies or taking a chance on what you might find on craigslist.com, HireAHelper provides reviews, a secure method of payment, and a list of qualified helpers. Sounds like a neat service, but Mike tells me that visitors who are coming through his PPC ads don’t seem to understand the site concept once they get there. They are unsure or uneducated about ordering local services online.

And that must be so because Mike writes that his conversion rate is .9%. Value to Mike is $15-$20 per sale.

Let’s see what the Copywriting Maven can do to help Mike move more local services to more people.

Here’s the background:

• The Goal
  Increase conversion rate from .9 to 2% in six months (Mike didn’t provide a goal, so I think doubling the conversion rate in 6 months is specific, realistic and quantifiable.)
• The Problem
  Visitors don’t understand the concept, or to my mind are skeptical and wary, especially about having strangers coming to their home without a specific company affiliation. I’ll address this in the critique below.
• The Current Landing Page
  www.hireahelper.com (homepage) but wants to make /Day-Labor, /Moving-Help, /Lawn-Help, and /Cleaning-Help specific pages work better. We’ll use www.hireahelper.com/Day-Labor for this makeover.
• Page/Ad that Generates the Click-Through
  Click here to view page.

The Maven’s 10-Point Critique

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#1 – Specific section site pages can work as effective landing pages, but they still have to do the heavy lifting of a regular landing page which, in this case, is get folks to sign-up.

The overall look of the site is attractive and well organized. Individual pages like this one look and read well. But as I review the copy I’m thinking it doesn’t address what, to my mind, are key factors. Credibility and Security. In fact, it’s not mentioned at all. Who are these people? Their credentials? What kind of insurance do you carry? What if “something happens?” What is my recourse? We’re all busy but folks in their 40s-70s who might be looking for inexpensive help would need to have their fears soothed. So soothe them.

#2 – In line with Point #1, bolster credibility with lots and lots of testimonials, the more local the better.

Have solid testimonials, with photos if possible, on this main page. When folks put in their zipcode – a great technique because you have major curiosity working for you – have them see local testimonials on the results page.

#3 – Consider a new tag line.

Get local help. Cheap. is catchy but it doesn’t encourage confidence – again, who are these people who will be coming to my house? You have a nice line toward the end of the copy: professional service, without the professional price. Think about how you could incorporate this kind of phrasing, add local or neighborhood or backyard, and I think you’ll pop your credibility even further.

#4 – Show me more credibility with BBB logo, state/local licenses, and/or other signs that your company is on the up and up.

Your prospects will put great stock in recognizable signs of quality and authority so make sure you have some.

#5 – Show me even more credibility with a strong guarantee.

Will you stand behind the work done by the people listed on your site? What other ways can you reduce the obvious risks of using your service?

#6 – Is there a better way to say “day laborers?”

When I hear/read the phrase “day laborer”, I’m picturing in my head a group of down-on-their-luck men milling around a truck waiting to be picked for some tough, dirty work. With that picture in my head, I’m not sure I want “day laborers” coming to my house. I like the term “helpers.” You can expand that to assistants, quick-job experts, or anything that makes sense. You can use day laborers if you immediately clarify what you mean with specifics – painters, computer repair genuises, etc. The key here is to use descriptions that carry a positive or neutral meaning.

#7 – Don’t forget to keep paragraph line lengths to 5 lines max and add plenty of white space.

Make your content easy to read, easy to scan. Especially important for older prospects. Watch the font size, too.

Click image for larger view

#8 – Spelling counts, too, and make your logo clickable to the homepage.

Ooopsy on the “recieve.” 🙂 . On the second point, experienced web folks expect this convention on most websites today. Keep the home tab, though, for everyone else.

#9 – How many customers do you have?

By state? Region? Find a way to run the numbers so you can create big visual bursts of additional credibility as visitors review your content and consider moving deeper into your site toward a sign-up.

#10 – How about a discount for first-time subscribers or offer some sort of multi-pack services option?

Give prospects an additional nudge toward trying you, because once they try you, they’ll help do some of the selling for you. In fact, think about tried and true ways you could leverage your existing customer base, like Member-Get-A-Member programs. Or perhaps some sort of social marketing to help boost the “I know a guy” referral network. That will help build your base AND your credibility all at the same time!

My thanks to Mike Glanz for his support of Heifer International.

Here’s your chance to be the Copywriting Maven’s next landing page makeover!

Got a landing page that’s more poop than pop? Willing to share with Copyblogger readers? Prepared to put a little of your own “skin in the game” for a Maven Makeover? Then follow your click to Maven’s Landing Page Makeover page for all the details. (Please note that I’m booked for new gratis critiques until 10/1. If you’re interested in a private critique/makeover, please email me directly.)