SitePal

Someone once said that the key to making the Internet more effective is to make it more like watching television. Few people actually like to read — especially if what they are trying to read is on a computer screen. Several studies have shown that the average web user doesn’t so much read pages as scan them, and if they can’t find what they are seeking within a few seconds, they go elsewhere.

Capitalizing on several years of research at Stanford University, the Internet firm Oddcast developed a service they call SitePal. SitePal enables website owners to create talking, animated characters called Avatars. Avatars can not only welcome visitors to a site, they can draw attention to important features and links the casual visitor might otherwise miss.

Using SitePal, Just Add Water created an Avatar named Todd (who looks and sounds surprisingly similar to a staff member of the same name). Todd welcomes visitors and calls their attention to the latest news and information. Todd’s pitch can also be easily updated, so that it is timely and fresh.

The first question Todd asks visitors when they arrive at the site is, Are you a diver? (Typically, about half the visitors to any dive store website are nondivers seeking to get certified.) Todd tells visitors that, if they are not certified, they should click on the YouTube banner near the top of the page to see “Four good reasons why you should get certified now.”

Go ahead. Click the banner. See what happens.

YouTube »

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