Different Segments Need Different Things
The other day I logged into Netflix, ready for them to give me some spectacular suggestions of movies I would like.
You know what I got, don't you? If you have kids, it's so easy to guess! Yes, I was rewarded by seeing a long list of Spider-man and Batman animated movies – because clearly the user that interacts with Netflix the most is my 6 year old boy.
Thankfully, I heard from a friend that I can create multiple user accounts so that Netflix will stop any cross-pollution of my recommendation stream (is that even a real phrase?).
A while ago I shared with you my segmentation strategy for my own site – and referenced the way they do segmentation in Vegas (Whales, dolphins, minnows).
The main point I was making was that by understanding your segments, you could more easily deliver targeted value. Some people may have walked away from the article with the idea that minnows were less important than whales. And that's incorrect. They're not more or less valuable. They're just different.
Just like me and my boy aren't more or less valuable. We're just different. With different needs. So we (logically) want different things from the same service.
Have you seen the new Headway Themes website?
I love the refresh that the Headway guys have done. I got the chance to work with them some on their targeting, segmentation strategies, and copy. So yes, I'm a bit biased.
But I love how their designer, and the team at Headway, implemented many of the things we talked about – particularly when it comes to segmentation.
One of the most important aspects of segmentation, in this particular case, was to make the site more welcoming to the variety of folks that visit.
After all, not everyone that shows up plans to run their own WordPress freelance business with the desire to work on 20-30 sites a year. That's only one segment of their visitors.
Making their site more welcoming
They discovered they had three core segments to welcome. The first is the person that is brand new to WordPress (newbie). They've heard about WordPress (who hasn't, by now?). They've heard about Headway. And now they want to know more.
Another segment is the group of folks that are designers. They may work on one or more than one site – but they love Headway because it gives them a blank canvas upon which to paint their own creations.
Lastly, the third segment is a group of developers that have clear plans on producing many sites using Headway. It's worth it to them to learn the nuances and to train up, because it will make them seriously productive over the course of their first year.
Three different segments – all being welcomed at once, and each being welcomed differently.
Targeting your message
Each of their segments was distinguished by how they intend to use the product, but also (therefore), what they need to know, in order to make a meaningful decision. To that end, each segment gets their own set of messages – which they experience as soon as they click “Get started” (in the image above).
Check out how Headway Themes has implemented this on their site.
And the best part is that the segment term (at the top) is a drop-down, so people who may exist in two segments can easily jump between both. Pretty cool, huh? Like I said, they're a smart bunch over there!
How welcoming is your website?
So the big question isn't really whether you've seen Headway Themes. No, the real question is if you're clear on the different groups of people that visit your site. Do you know who they are? Do you know what they do?
And are you creating an experience for them that makes sense?
If you're wondering how to get a better handle on what people are doing on your site (which goes a long way to telling you about your segments), check out my friends at segment.io – they're pretty cool too!