I seldom write about the Web on this blog, but it's a critical part of what we do -- and every year it increases in importance. When I started in the business, Web sites were an afterthought. Many top players didn't even put URLs in their commercials, and Web sales were only about 5% of direct sales. Today, 50% is not uncommon.
Much like The Divine Seven criteria for products and the Tried & True Techniques for DRTV commercials, there is a list of proven ways to maximize DRTV sales online. It's a long list, but the good news is that the rules are even more steadfast than my SciMark criteria because: a) nearly everything that happens online is automatically measured and logged, and b) proper scientific testing (e.g. A/B splits) is much easier to implement online.
Still, Web behavior is constantly changing, and it's a good idea to challenge assumptions regularly to make sure they still hold true ... which brings me to my point.
Jakob Nielsen, the nation's foremost expert on Web behavior, has an article out today that puts new numbers behind an old rule about Web behavior: People don't read "below the fold." That is, they tend to stop reading where the screen cuts off and scrolling would be required to read further.
Nielsen writes:
In our [latest] study, user viewing time was distributed as follows:
Above the fold: 80.3%
Below the fold: 19.7%
... The implications are clear: the material that's the most important for the users' goals or your business goals should be above the fold. Users do look below the fold, but not nearly as much as they look above the fold. [emphasis his]
So if your Web design is putting a key part of your pitch "below the fold," chances are visitors to your site aren't seeing it.
This is why many smart Web vendors put rotating images (DTM) -- or better yet fully animated Flash movies (Permission Interactive) -- "above the fold." Such techniques allow you to present multiple elements in a single area that represents the "prime real estate" on the page.
Of course, where "the fold" actually occurs is an interesting question. The challenge: Different people prefer different screen resolutions, and that changes how much content appears above the fold. For example, I prefer the lowest resolution (800 x 600) because I find it to be easier on my eyes. For some sites, that can mean both vertical and lateral scrolling is required for me to view the page's entire content.
Other people prefer higher resolutions that make things smaller but require less scrolling. (Nielsen used 1,024 x 768 for his study.) So for which users should you design your sites?
Since this is the online world, the answer is being measured and logged every second. In fact, your own site will log this information over time and give you an answer specific to your campaign. To start, simply use the most common screen resolution being logged by your other DRTV sites. You could rely on broader trend data, but it's important to remember the heaviest users of the Internet are young, ultra tech-savvy people who are not the core demographic for DRTV.
It is interesting to keep track of the broader trends, though. According to this Web site, which publicly shares its logs from the last 10 years, the trend is moving rapidly toward higher resolutions. When I started in the industry, most people favored my preferred resolution of 800 x 600. Somewhere around 2005, it seems the majority switched to 1,024 x 768. Today, even higher resolutions are now the norm.
So I'm a little old school. At least I can take comfort in the fact most of you are as well. You see, according to the logs for this site, 1,024 x 768 is the most preferred screen resolution for readers of this blog. That's so 2005!
