Website Video Spokespeople.

We’ve all seen them.

You arrive at a website wanting information when your browsing is unexpectedly interrupted with a talking head.  It’s like walking into a furniture store to look at new sofas. A salesperson comes over to help you before you’re four steps in the door. All you want is to get comfortable, have a look at the goods, sit on a couple sofas and compare prices. You say you’re “just looking” and they back off for a bit. The sales tactic is annoying as hell, but it’s expected when you go to a furniture store, or a car dealership or any other high-priced retailer.

But unlike the predictable, smiley retail salesperson, website video salespeople spokespeople are overly intrusive. People don’t want their private Internet surfing interjected with sales pitches delivered by uninvited strangers.

I get more than a handful of unsolicited emails every week trying to convince me that my clients can’t compete without this “technology of the future,” that their 3D Video Technology will “captivate visitors” and “increase conversions.”  All the vendors of this technology say it’s “proven” to make your website “stand out from the crowd.”

Their claims seem unrealistic to me because whenever one of those engaging spokespeople automatically pops up on my screen, I look for the nearest “close” button, mute my speakers or leave. But I could be wrong! Perhaps I’m just in the minority and missing the value that I’ve been told so many website owners and visitors have come to rely on.

I conducted a little survey using Survey Monkey to find out.

How do you feel about website video spokespersons that automatically run when you arrive on a website?

There were 86 respondents invited from my business Facebook page and Twitter account. Most of my connections on these networks are tech-savvy and familiar with Internet marketing, advertising and social media.

Two comments were submitted.

1)  they creep me out
2) I think video is powerful on a website, just don’t think it should start automatically. People could be taken off guard particularly if they are at work, etc.

I was surprised by these results. I figured most people are like me and would vote for “annoying” or “hate,” but I couldn’t believe there were not at least a couple votes for “love” or “okay.”

Suggested Best Practice for Website Video Spokespeople: Most people enjoy videos. Videos can be useful, engaging and fun. But think twice before you enable auto-play!

When I meet someone new and collect their business card, I always ask if they have a website. I want to check it out to see how this interesting person is being represented online. Does their website match their personality, or leave me with a completely different impression than the one I got from our in-person meeting?

If they do have a website, my next question is “How’s it working for you?“

I’ve only met one person who has proudly smiled and told me they love their website, that it’s helped them connect with their clients and that they can’t believe they used to do business without one. Only one person. EVER.

The most common response is confusion. It seems most people and businesses have not given much thought to whether their website provides any value or not.

If your website happiness isn’t at least 85% (always leave room to improve!), or you don’t know if or how it is impacting your business, it’s probably time to talk to a web professional to help you ramp up your online presence.

Of course the visual design and structure need to be rock solid. But to be valuable, your website also needs:

Quality Content
Useful content is still the #1 reason people come to your website. They want to know what you know! Find out what they want and give it to them. Quality content is also the #1 factor used by search engines to rank your site in organic search listings so people can find you.

Content Management & Publishing
It’s impossible for any person or business to say what they need to say, publish it once and never return to it again. Times change. Practices change. Customers change. Your business changes. If it isn’t super simple to update your existing content, add new content, and publish and share specific content (e.g., blog posts) as quickly as your business changes, your website will be stagnant, outdated and useless before you can say Content Management Capabilities.

Interactivity
You and your customers need methods for connecting and interacting with one another. Fortunately, it’s easier than ever to do this and social tools that facilitate the process are available in abundance. Obvious calls-to-action on your website will direct people where they need to go to join the conversation.

Websites can be very simple or complex and serve many purposes. Most businesses will find that addressing fundamental issues such as design, content, management and interaction will dramatically improve the value of their website and how they and their customers use it.