How to Increase Conversion with Design Solutions. Interview with Denis Mavrin
Posted: Mon Dec 23, 2024 8:51 am
The main task of a marketer is to attract as many clients as possible and increase the company's profitability. The expansion of the number of advertising channels, new technologies, and analytics are used. Meanwhile, the influence of design on conversion is often underestimated: advertising banners are drawn by some inexpensive freelancers, and photos for social networks are searched through the Internet and copied by SMM specialist Stepan for a small bonus. But high-quality design can increase conversion, and therefore the return on advertising, several times over.
Denis Mavrin, a designer with 10 years of experience telegram china phone number and founder of the conference on design in the digital environment DesignConf, told us why design is so important and how to create creative that influences conversion.
— Denis, why is it so important for advertisers to pay sufficient attention to the design of the website, widgets, creatives in social networks, etc.? How does it work?
Because all communications used in one way or another work on the psychological level. A person sometimes buys not always consciously. He simply chooses what is closer to him, what suits him, or how he wants to look, what he wants to match. Why do we like the Apple website, for example? Because it is made in such a way that you want to touch it. There are micro shadows, reflexes, various glares, all this makes objects alive. It seems to me that if the word "dog" is written on it, it will start barking in the user's head!
Psychology is very important in advertising in general. The entire brand model is created in accordance with various human archetypes, and a strategy for working with a particular audience is built. I often make designs, the tasks for which consist of making it as “collective farm” and cheap as possible. So that it is clear that little was paid for this creative, the brand does not spend money on advertising, and therefore the product is inexpensive. The example that I like most is cheaptrip, so “close to the people”.
Accordingly, it works on the psychology of the target audience. And there is advertising, on the contrary, for white collars who want to match the advertising we give.
If we talk specifically about SMM, with the help of the design of published posts, you can strengthen the message, its significance and emotional component.
I'll give you an example from my Instagram life. When I posted this photo, people wrote to me: "Wow, we're looking at this photo and thinking that you're on the edge of a cliff, our heads are spinning, this is something!!!" But I was actually standing a meter from the cliff.
I simply moved myself a meter closer to the cliff and thereby increased the effect of "danger". I'm sure if I had posted the original, my head would not be spinning.
Cool, thoughtful design of photos posted on social media can help strengthen the message conveyed by the posts.
— What do you recommend paying special attention to when preparing creatives for social networks?
The first is the time it takes to read information. It is now extremely important to make the message as easy to read as possible, as the time of contact with the audience has decreased.
I remember when I was a student, commercials lasted forty seconds, sometimes a minute. And I was told that in Japan, on average, the entire commercial lasts fifteen seconds, and there are even one-second commercials. It sounded crazy then, but now it is a reality here in Russia.
It is in social networks, where people try to quickly absorb the maximum amount of information, that the contact time has been reduced to literally a second. That is why laconic advertising messages work well. Unfortunately, we are not yet accustomed to this and often try to use the advertising space that we bought to the maximum. No one understands that the more information we give, the more the significance of each advertising message is leveled. If we make a bunch of different information messages on one advertising page, nothing will ultimately attract attention. The usual “banner blindness” will work. That is why the laconicism of the message is one of the key requirements for creatives in social networks.
Don't waste your advertising budget
The call tracking and end-to-end analytics service will show the effectiveness of each source in terms of “from click to sale”.
Get a consultation
— And in terms of some gimmicks, bells and whistles... What’s especially cool right now?
Micro-animations are gaining momentum both on websites and in social networks .
Veterans from Walt Disney Studios wrote 12 principles of animation back in the 1930s, which are still in effect today. Those who use them are real pros. They describe the physics of any object: squashing and stretching, floating, theatrical, bounce, etc. For example, when moving, an object cannot move at the same speed all the time. At the very end, it must slow down or go past the end point and bounce back.
This is especially relevant for pop-up elements on the site: drop-down lists, expanders, banners, banner scrollers, buttons and hovering over them, etc. But also for creatives - advertising and those that we use in social networks.
These are all examples of viral content for social networks. I call it "sticky". Although we are now dealing with an extremely spoiled user, there is still something to hook him with. For example, you can use game mechanics in social networks - interactive stories. Let's say you give some initial situation, and the user chooses the next steps. Based on the majority of answers, you draw a continuation of this story.
Personally, I want to try some animations with frequently changing objects from game mechanics, where, for example, you need to catch an object and post it in your story. For example, for Starbucks it could be coffee. You stop the story at any time, and you get a flipping cup of coffee, you caught it. It's like a toy with a wolf that catches eggs: the same principle. You catch it, make a printscreen and post it. Of course, you can do something more interesting, it all depends on the boldness of the brand.
Gamification is used to increase activity on the page
At the same time, not all brands need to be luxury and show themselves from the most polished, beautiful side in social networks. In such game mechanics, on the contrary, you need to be a little simpler. More honest, so to speak. You can and should fool around a little. After all, even the so-called elite are, in fact, ordinary people. In front of the camera, they are one, and at home, with loved ones or friends, they are different. So brands need to be a little simpler in social networks. They can be that very friend with whom you informally communicate, joke around or play a silly game. Here are your Louis Vuitton suitcases, let's throw them to each other. If you don't catch them, the things will scatter, now pack them.
— Okay, for social networks — conciseness, interactivity, simplicity. And what works to increase the effectiveness of other communication tools, for example, widgets?
There is a big problem with all these widgets, pop-up consultants, etc. - they are very annoying. No matter how the color and font are configured, in most cases they still differ greatly from the site, and sometimes even interfere with the user viewing advertising messages. At the same time, you can't do without them. I call it redneck marketing. It seems clear that it looks bad, but it brings in money, so it must be done. You just need to make them as consistent with the site as possible with the help of design.
I am against making them exactly in the style of the site. They should look like some kind of tuning for a car, but a branded one. Let's say, like Brabus for Mercedes. It is clear that it suits this car, but it is also clear that it is a little different. For example, I like it when there are elements that fly beyond the widget itself.
Denis Mavrin, a designer with 10 years of experience telegram china phone number and founder of the conference on design in the digital environment DesignConf, told us why design is so important and how to create creative that influences conversion.
— Denis, why is it so important for advertisers to pay sufficient attention to the design of the website, widgets, creatives in social networks, etc.? How does it work?
Because all communications used in one way or another work on the psychological level. A person sometimes buys not always consciously. He simply chooses what is closer to him, what suits him, or how he wants to look, what he wants to match. Why do we like the Apple website, for example? Because it is made in such a way that you want to touch it. There are micro shadows, reflexes, various glares, all this makes objects alive. It seems to me that if the word "dog" is written on it, it will start barking in the user's head!
Psychology is very important in advertising in general. The entire brand model is created in accordance with various human archetypes, and a strategy for working with a particular audience is built. I often make designs, the tasks for which consist of making it as “collective farm” and cheap as possible. So that it is clear that little was paid for this creative, the brand does not spend money on advertising, and therefore the product is inexpensive. The example that I like most is cheaptrip, so “close to the people”.
Accordingly, it works on the psychology of the target audience. And there is advertising, on the contrary, for white collars who want to match the advertising we give.
If we talk specifically about SMM, with the help of the design of published posts, you can strengthen the message, its significance and emotional component.
I'll give you an example from my Instagram life. When I posted this photo, people wrote to me: "Wow, we're looking at this photo and thinking that you're on the edge of a cliff, our heads are spinning, this is something!!!" But I was actually standing a meter from the cliff.
I simply moved myself a meter closer to the cliff and thereby increased the effect of "danger". I'm sure if I had posted the original, my head would not be spinning.
Cool, thoughtful design of photos posted on social media can help strengthen the message conveyed by the posts.
— What do you recommend paying special attention to when preparing creatives for social networks?
The first is the time it takes to read information. It is now extremely important to make the message as easy to read as possible, as the time of contact with the audience has decreased.
I remember when I was a student, commercials lasted forty seconds, sometimes a minute. And I was told that in Japan, on average, the entire commercial lasts fifteen seconds, and there are even one-second commercials. It sounded crazy then, but now it is a reality here in Russia.
It is in social networks, where people try to quickly absorb the maximum amount of information, that the contact time has been reduced to literally a second. That is why laconic advertising messages work well. Unfortunately, we are not yet accustomed to this and often try to use the advertising space that we bought to the maximum. No one understands that the more information we give, the more the significance of each advertising message is leveled. If we make a bunch of different information messages on one advertising page, nothing will ultimately attract attention. The usual “banner blindness” will work. That is why the laconicism of the message is one of the key requirements for creatives in social networks.
Don't waste your advertising budget
The call tracking and end-to-end analytics service will show the effectiveness of each source in terms of “from click to sale”.
Get a consultation
— And in terms of some gimmicks, bells and whistles... What’s especially cool right now?
Micro-animations are gaining momentum both on websites and in social networks .
Veterans from Walt Disney Studios wrote 12 principles of animation back in the 1930s, which are still in effect today. Those who use them are real pros. They describe the physics of any object: squashing and stretching, floating, theatrical, bounce, etc. For example, when moving, an object cannot move at the same speed all the time. At the very end, it must slow down or go past the end point and bounce back.
This is especially relevant for pop-up elements on the site: drop-down lists, expanders, banners, banner scrollers, buttons and hovering over them, etc. But also for creatives - advertising and those that we use in social networks.
These are all examples of viral content for social networks. I call it "sticky".
Although we are now dealing with an extremely spoiled user, there is still something to hook him with. For example, you can use game mechanics in social networks - interactive stories. Let's say you give some initial situation, and the user chooses the next steps. Based on the majority of answers, you draw a continuation of this story.Personally, I want to try some animations with frequently changing objects from game mechanics, where, for example, you need to catch an object and post it in your story. For example, for Starbucks it could be coffee. You stop the story at any time, and you get a flipping cup of coffee, you caught it. It's like a toy with a wolf that catches eggs: the same principle. You catch it, make a printscreen and post it. Of course, you can do something more interesting, it all depends on the boldness of the brand.
Gamification is used to increase activity on the page
At the same time, not all brands need to be luxury and show themselves from the most polished, beautiful side in social networks. In such game mechanics, on the contrary, you need to be a little simpler. More honest, so to speak. You can and should fool around a little. After all, even the so-called elite are, in fact, ordinary people. In front of the camera, they are one, and at home, with loved ones or friends, they are different. So brands need to be a little simpler in social networks. They can be that very friend with whom you informally communicate, joke around or play a silly game. Here are your Louis Vuitton suitcases, let's throw them to each other. If you don't catch them, the things will scatter, now pack them.
— Okay, for social networks — conciseness, interactivity, simplicity. And what works to increase the effectiveness of other communication tools, for example, widgets?
There is a big problem with all these widgets, pop-up consultants, etc. - they are very annoying. No matter how the color and font are configured, in most cases they still differ greatly from the site, and sometimes even interfere with the user viewing advertising messages. At the same time, you can't do without them. I call it redneck marketing.
It seems clear that it looks bad, but it brings in money, so it must be done. You just need to make them as consistent with the site as possible with the help of design.I am against making them exactly in the style of the site. They should look like some kind of tuning for a car, but a branded one. Let's say, like Brabus for Mercedes. It is clear that it suits this car, but it is also clear that it is a little different. For example, I like it when there are elements that fly beyond the widget itself.