Do you pay enough attention to persuasive design? No? You could be losing lots of money. This subject is often overlooked by many website owners, but one of critical importance. Persuasive design is one of the critical factors that can convert prospects into customers.

The art of persuasion in itself is nothing new. From Cicero’s speeches to modern TV ads, the goal of a communicator is to persuade audiences. However, the art of online persuasion is a relatively new challenge. Many still struggle to understand how powerful persuasive design can be when marketing products and services. In today’s highly competitive environment we can’t rely on copywriting alone to persuade a prospect to become a customer.

Have you ever wondered what impact a website’s images have on sales? Below we have some pictures of apples. Let’s assume for a moment that you’re selling apples. Which picture do you think would motivate and engage your website’s visitor most? Although those are not the best pictures I managed to find, there’s a clear difference between the first row of pictures and the second.

Take a look at the first row pictures—the focus is on the apple alone. These pictures don’t offer any clue about how the customer might feel after purchasing the apple. Providing illustrations for the sake of illustrating your product or service is a lame way of approaching online persuasion.

The pictures in the second row each tell a story about human interaction with apples. Whether the apple is eaten by a baby or by a man, those pictures tell true stories about passionate consumption of juicy apples. You could easily relate to that man to that cute baby. Maybe you already want that apple! Now you know what makes one picture more persuasive than another does. If you have access to professional designers, have them make professional photographs that tell stories to your visitors and that have an underlying call to action message behind them. Before too long your visitors will feel a difference!

Pictures that don’t sell!

Pictures that sell!

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