We’ve all clicked on ads that don’t deliver.
A while back, I spied an ad on Twitter for an app I currently use that didn’t live up to its promise. This is a key element to building converting funnels: living up to the promise you start with.
The Customer Funnel Details
Here’s a quick hit of the funnel in question:
| Customer (me) journey status at the time: Newly onboarding customer |
| Brand spotted: Out in the wild, an ad on Twitter X. |
| Funnel promise: We’ll show you how big companies create great editorial workflows (i.e., let’s help you get more out of Airtable) |
| Funnel delivery: F |
The Why and What Happened
I’m a fan of Airtable. (Ask anyone who knows me.)
Customer journey position:
Onboarding Customer + Fan
At the time, I was a new onboarding customer who was already a fan. I had already recommended this product and shared my “base” with a lot of my coworkers so they could check it out. (They still like me, I promise.) They had adopted it, as well. I was originally introduced to them through promoted social ads on Twitter that I was introduced to them — So that’s a win for their acquisition funnel. Go, ads.
I’d been spending time on the product when I could. I’d already used it to solve some workflow and information connection issues at my job. I’ve also used it to better track my efforts here on the site. But there’s a lot to this app. It has SO many capabilities that I have barely scratched the surface. There are formulas, there are blocks, and there are so many features I have yet to quite figure out.
So one morning a while back, while sitting at my computer with my fourth cup of coffee (this is a pretty likely number) and perusing Twitter feeds for the latest on my job, on General Hospital and the San Jose Sharks, I was targeted with another Airtable ad.
Here is the ad:
The ad text: “See how forward-thinking cos like Buzzfeed, Group Nine, & Condé Nast Entertainment power their editorial workflows.”
I want to know that. If they are going to tell me how Buzzfeed and others use this tool for their editorial calendar — that’s great! I love seeing what others do that’s successful, so I can learn, adopt, and adapt. This reads like a case study that I, as an onboarding customer, wanted to see in the days of trying to see the power of the product.
This is the kind of content that can be delivered when you can’t tell if your customers and non-customers are both seeing your ad — there is value for both in a case study like this.
But the ad click took me straight to my dashboard in Airtable.
This is the UTM link this ad delivers to: https://airtable.com/?try=editorial&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=103017lantern&utm_content=mondrianedcal
This was disappointing.
I wanted to see how these big-name customers used the product. I wanted to learn better ways to take advantage of all it had to offer. Where is the content I thought I’d get to see?
What did work
The ad did its job, and the copy was great:
“See how forward-thinking cos like Buzzfeed, Group Nine, & Condé Nast Entertainment power their editorial workflows.”
Good power words:
- power
- workflows
- forward-thinking
Great social proof triggers with brand names I know well.
Where it missed the mark
If you’re going to tweak my curiosity and fulfill the need-to-know-now moment you created for me (go you), then you better deliver. Otherwise, it’s like saying, “Hey, I sent you flowers… but I had them delivered to the wrong address. Don’t I still get credit?”
It’s the thought that counts, right? Not when you’re working to steer your customers on their journey and put yourself as the one to help them win the girl, conquer the mountain, or just learn how to build a database on steroids.
A number of things could have happened on the way to this ad being sponsored. I also noticed, after going back to the ad to see if I’d somehow clicked the only link wrong, the date on this ad was October 2017. It could be an old ad. The content could be gone. Moved. I’m not sure – but I left that interaction as a disappointed customer. I’m still (always) a fan of the product, but I felt a little let down that I couldn’t engage with what they offered.
When every interaction is a chance to build experience and emotional relationships with your customers, this had potential to be a big hit. It was an opportunity to win me even further.
Key Takeaways:
- Deliver on your promise.
- If you mention a customer like a case study, your reader is going to want to learn more about that customer.
- Make sure you send people from your ads to the right next step for them (not for you).
