Try video

Recently, the New York Times reported that the attention span for online video viewership has been steadily increasing. On blip.tv, a semiprofessional and professional video sharing service focusing on video blogging, the “average length of a program has increased from three to five minutes a year ago, to five to seven now,” said Mike Hudack, its chief executive. He goes on to say that “how-to” shows keep audiences for a long time.

“If someone says at the beginning of the show he will make a chair, he spends the next 20 minutes making it in his garage, and then he sits down in the chair, people will watch that all the way through, and they love it.”

Personally, I am a big fan of companies who use video to demonstrate or showcase their software. Show me “how-to” easily use your product and I will be sold. Show me a box shot and you’ve put the burden on me—to research, compare, read reviews and make my own assumptions. And, I still may not be sold.

I searched on “Spanish language software.” Rosetta Stone is well-known brand whose ad caught my attention immediately— the copy is simple, to the point and “award-winning” anything is always nice.

The landing page is great, but I think Rosetta Stone has really missed an opportunity to really SELL me their software. Speech analysis tools! Milestone features! Real-life simulations! Cool! So why not show them to me?

Our recommendation? Try testing rotating screenshots of these features or maybe show me a short demo of the product. Try video. But don’t let it distract from conversion—use it to persuade your potential customer—let it support conversion.