So I recently returned from a vacation near Cancun, Mexico. First let me say, that a week off sucks. “Wow Bruce you’re finally starting to relax!” - that was quoted to me on the day before we left! Ack. You need a week to unwind and at least another week to start recovery. Anyway… just a little life lesson, do with it what you want.

Let me tell you , i was shocked, SHOCKED!, at the cost of food. On an enclosed resort with no competition, they can charge whatever they want. So I forked out $20/meal on average. Good food, fine, I can take it. But then I went into town. It was the same damn thing. Seriously, I paid more for a cab ride in Cancun, Mexico than I did in Manhattan. Nonetheless, how can food and service be the same cost? $75 for a 60 minute massage. $6 for a mojito. Come on..

Then I walked one block up from the beach. Massage, $33 for 60 minutes, mojito $4, meals $10.

2 blocks up, massage $10, mojito $2, and meals $4-5.

I didn’t venture further away…

But this is what the cost of pretty much anything in Mexico looks like:

Essentially the further you are from the beach, it’s an exponential decay in cost. Things get cheap fast the further you are from the beach. From food, drink and service to real estate.

So how does this relate to web usability?

Well let’s take the same graph, but this time, let’s replace the horizontal scale to the # of clicks it takes to pull your prospect into your funnel and close them on whatever it is you ar trying to get them to do (buy, sign-up, click an ad, etc).

So the further you engage your prospect from your home or landing page, the less likely you are to close that individual.

Lesson?

Get them intruiged fast.

Answer their questions faster.

Get them into your sales/action funnel ASAP.

The longer you let them drift on your site, the less likely you get the results you want.

Questions? Drop me a line.

Bruce