Good in Theory, Good in Practice

When designing the website for a previous business – I was convinced it was best to use a long-form web page to get signups.

(They’re those long, ugly, 15-page-long web pages that you scroll through that give you every possible reason why you should sign up for a particular offer, and address every single objection that you could possibly have.)

In theory, ugly long-form web pages work better than prettier and shorter web pages.

I’d seen them work elsewhere. I’d used them to improve the results for clients. And I’d used them on my own websites too.

In practically every scenario, I’d seen long-form landing pages outperform short-form pages.

But this time… The long-form page bombed.

A shorter, punchier version of the page outperformed it by miles. That shorter, punchier web-page has gone on to attract hundreds of thousands of users for that particular software venture – and continues to perform well, long after my time with that venture.

It was a good idea to try using a long-form webpage – in theory.

Gut-feeling, experience, expert opinion, data analysis, research, etc – these are all good in theory too.

But good theory only works well when it’s held accountable to good performance.

If good theory isn’t measured and held accountable to performance, you can’t learn from it; build on it; refine it; or use it consistently to any degree of success.

• Sometimes your theory works well. And you get better outcomes as you continue to act on, and confirm, your theories.

• Sometimes your theory works poorly. And the failure helps to refine your theory into the future.

• Sometimes you come across something unexpected. Something that doesn’t fit within your existing theory. And it expands your knowledge, and refines your theory.