Quizzes can bring people back to your website, which can be huge. Northwestern’s Medill research determined that the frequency with which a reader comes back to a publication’s website “is the single biggest predictor of retaining subscribers—more than the number of stories read or the time spent reading them.” So quizzes are definitely worthwhile to try.
I just found out that I am a Strategist, thanks to Lessiter Media’s No-Till Farmer quiz. The quiz is sponsored by one of their advertisers, Indigo Ag “to provide you with a customized personality profile, information and tools you need to get closer to the results you want in 2021.” After answering a few fun photo choices to figure out my personality, I received this:
“You are the Strategist. You’ve got the perfect plan, so others follow it.” And then at the bottom you see this: “At Indigo Ag, we know how effective asking one question can be. How one practice change, one grain marketing decision, can accelerate your path to success.” I’m also given links to their Grainwaves podcast and Atlas Insights, their next-gen product.
The quiz was definitely more fun than just reading an ad. We like quizzes, trivia—virtual nights still attract a big crowd—and puzzles. The Wall Street Journal studied how different reader habits affected subscriber churn. They looked into how various products and subscriber actions affected customer retention during the first 100 days after a reader had signed up. They found that “playing a puzzle had a more dramatic impact on reader retention than other actions the team had been promoting.”
Here are more reasons for using quizzes:
To facilitate your advertisers. At this time last year, the quiz “Mexican Caribbean: What is Your Celebrity Travel Style?” in Questex’s Luxury Travel Advisor brand might have looked a little out to sea. But now seems a good time to get people excited about traveling again. “You know your clients’ celebrity travel style,” they write. “You may even have clients who are celebrities. But did you ever wonder about your celebrity travel style? Take this quick quiz to find out…” The six questions range from who you want on your private plane down there to whether you want to stay in a private jungle loft or beach villa. There’s no right or wrong here at the end, only “Apple Leisure Group can help you and your clients find the perfect vacation package for every celebrity style. Click here to learn more.” Oh, my style is America’s Sweetheart!
To sell products and build archives. MedLearn Media has a popular Compliance Question of the Week. Typical “Laboratory Question” is: “I’ve heard there is a CPT® code for COVID-19, is this true?” After the answer is given, readers are told that “This question was answered in an edition of our Laboratory Compliance Manager. For more hot topics relating to laboratory services, please visit our store or call us…”
To educate readers about your topic – and maybe sell a webinar. “Who are these Five Influential Women Engineers?” the American Society of Mechanical Engineers asks in this quiz. “Many influential women engineers are role models and mentors for the next generation of female engineers. How many of these women do you recognize?” Then after I got just 2 out of 5 questions right, I got this: “Interested in finding out more about these influential women engineers?” Hit the Learn More button. Another way to do this would be to market a webinar based on showing people how much they do not know on an important topic.
Lead generation. “How Much Do You Know About Professional Development for EdTech?” the latest Education Week quiz asks. It’s sponsored by Spectrum Enterprise, but Education Week maintains editorial control. You have to give your email address to see the results. For this quiz, there were 593 participants. (I got 5 out of 8 right, just below the average.) In the past, Education Week would regularly achieve nearly 90% quiz completions and around 60% of people who completed the quiz filling out the registration form.
To establish the organization as an authority. On the American Chemical Society homepage, there’s a “Molecule of the Week” feature: “I’m a new weapon in the fight against COVID-19. What molecule am I?” (There’s always a clever question.) I click for the answer. “Clofazimine. In the age of COVID-19, clofazimine may have a new life,” the answer page says. “Learn more about this molecule from CAS, the most authoritative and comprehensive source for chemical information.” When I click on their archive, I see they’ve been doing this feature since 2005! (Bullvalene was the first. Superbowl was the fifth.)
