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The Seven Second Test for B2B Marketers

Jeff Ogden

Jul. 27, 2010

At the Social Media Camp on Long Island last week, we got into an interesting discussion about how to get attention to drive sales leads. When I shared the "7 Second Test," one of the experts agreed, "That's why every comedian makes sure his first joke is his best. That's what grabs the audience."

The idea of the "7 Second Test" is that you have 7 seconds to get the attention of the visitor to your website. In those first few seconds, they decide if your website is worth further investigation. If the conclusion is "yes," they continue on. If it's "no," they leave.

As a B2B marketer, what can we do to measure how well we are doing in the "7 Second Test"?

Here's what I suggest:
  1. Get a stopwatch and a swatch of black felt.
  2. Find someone who is unfamiliar with your company. (Your mom's a good candidate.)
  3. On a computer, go to your company's home page.
  4. Cover the monitor with felt, so she cannot see it.
  5. Sit your mom down in front of the monitor. Don't tell her what you're doing, only that you want her to tell you what she sees.
  6. Start the stopwatch and uncover the monitor.
  7. When the stopwatch gets to 7 seconds, hit the power button on the monitor to turn it off.
  8. Ask your test subject (mom) to describe what she saw.
    • Can she describe your company?
    • Can she articulate your value?
    • Can she state your value proposition?
    • Can she identify your target market?

If she did not do very well, rethink your website design. How can you grab the reader in 7 seconds?

I think this will open some eyes in your company and you'll see why Simplicity is one of my "6 Keys to B2B Marketing Success Today."


Jeff Ogden is President of Find New Customers "Lead Generation Made Simple". He's also the author of two highly acclaimed white papers, How to Find New Customers and Definitive Guide to Making Quota, as well the ebook, Prospect Driven Marketing. Find New Customers helps businesses develop and implement programs to improve the way they find and acquire new customers using best practices in lead generation.

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