Reading through the the thread - Persuasion Architecture and the Art of Agreement for Website Success - is inspiring. Although the discussion starts with a short review (by Kim) of the Eisenberg brothers' new book, it evolves into a stirring debate and exploration of how websites can influence user actions. From the thread:

What struck me most, as I'm reading, is the reminder that people come to our web sites because they have volunteered to do so. Even if you did something to drive them there, they still came of their own free will. They have agreed to see what you do. Now what?

Do you have a site that's relevant?

Does it deliver what the landing page in the search engine said it would?

Can they relate to you, your company, your experience, your offer?

The book points out that just because they agreed to come, doesn't mean they agreed to buy anything. Or do anything, for that matter.

I think this is an amazing way of thinking about sites. SEO/M's are so focused on links, rank and indexing. Do they care about the site visitor satisfaction angle? Does a site owner have a self rightous view of their site, leaving out the possibility that they are always one click away from a big fat zero?

Craig Danuloff had this excellent bit of insight:

In terms of the first question in this thread, about the realization that visitors are volunteers, I made the point in my post yesterday that a great way to think about your site is as if you're Bill Murray in Groundhog's Day and trying to make it through the night with Andie MacDowell - every day they come and you get to try and get them one step closer to completion.

Using the persuasive techniques in the book certainly can shorten the process, but it also requires great analytics and the ability to watch and learn from users behaviour. Most sites have at least a fair amount of traffic, yet let these prospects fail in the same ways day after day after day.

The entire thread is well worth a read - and it sounds like Bryan & Jeffrey's book (Waiting for your Cat to Bark) is, too. I've hung out with both of them a few times and am pleased to say they're very nice guys. Like me, they work with their mom, so I can't help but be a bit charmed.