Quick Overview

Since launching its web-based business in 1998, BLR — Business & Legal Resources has come a long way in converting visitors into subscribers online. Starting with basic testing in the early 2000s and graduating to more advanced, segment-based testing during the past four years has helped BLR hone offers and page design to get high conversion rates. We think other subscription sites could learn from how this niche B2B publisher optimizes its site to turn leads into sales.

Target Market

Managers and professionals within companies — small to large — who need information about the different federal and state laws and regulations affecting their companies, mostly relating to employment, safety, and environmental compliance.

Content Model

 BLR publishes four subscription site portals: HR.BLR.com, Compensation.BLR.com, Safety.BLR.com, and Enviro.BLR.com. Each portal provides news, forums, databases, business tools and resources, training tools and resources, compliance resources, and law analysis. The news is free, but pretty much everything else (besides some teaser copy) is behind the paywall — a data-driven decision based on the results of several A/B and multivariate tests around the free vs. paid content balance.

One of the major hooks BLR uses to convince visitors to purchase is by showing them how the tools and resources behind the paywall can save time while helping them do their jobs better. Tools such as the Job Descriptions Manager, for example, allows HR.BLR.com subscribers to write, store, and organize job descriptions. The tool allows them to access a database of standard job descriptions from which to edit and tailor to their company’s specifications.

“People subscribe for the tools, the checklists,” Baker said. “And we translate all the laws into plain English. It helps with their everyday duties.” 

Training materials are the most clicked on by HR.BLR.com and Safety.BLR.com subscribers. Salary information, including a database of state and national salaries for specific job titles, appeal most to Compensation.BLR.com subscribers. And legal information appeals most to Enviro.BLR.com subscribers.

Baker attributes BLR’s high renewal rate to its “robust editorial team.” There are 23 editors, many of whom were lawyers in a past life. HR.BLR.com’s legal editors, for example, used to be employment lawyers. Most editors were somehow involved in the industry they are writing about, which Baker thinks adds a great deal to the value of the subscription products.

Paid content on HR.BLR.com also includes a tool that allows subscribers to create company newsletters for print, email, or uploading to an intranet. Checklists, calculators, audio presentations, policies, posters, handouts, and white papers are also part of the content mix. The HR community section includes cartoons and access to upcoming webinars. It also has an ‘Ask an Expert’ function that allows subscribers to type in specific HR questions, which will be answered within one business day.

Safety.BLR.com’s paid content includes a library of workplace safety checklists, forms, policies, and plans. It also includes safety newsletter templates that can be distributed to employees, a tool for building workplace safety plans, and several audio presentations on topics such as back safety, bloodborne pathogens, and disaster planning.

Compensation.BLR.com and Enviro.BLR.com have content models similar to the other two portals. Enviro.BLR.com has several government compliance tools that allow companies to file reports to the EPA online.

Revenue Streams

Most of BLR’s revenue comes from recurring subscriptions. BLR offers subscriptions for single-state, single users priced at $895 per year or $89 per month — another data-driven decision based on the results of A/B and multivariate testing of prices and subscription terms. BLR builds custom subscription packages for multiple users, users in multiple states, and users needing access to more than one portal.

In addition, people looking for just one or more items can purchase individual products from a separate online catalog. Most of the items are included with the purchase of a subscription. All of them are created in-house. “We use single products to get [prospects] into the process,” Baker said. “We want to upsell a subscription.”

One-off products include:

• Audio presentations on topics such as COBRA, affirmative action, age discrimination, compensation 101, OSHA inspections, chemical spills, etc. Most are priced at $127-$495.
• Books on environmental compliance, employee compensation, etc. Priced at $395 each.
• Training resources such as a customer service training DVD, drug-free workplace training videotape, audio “click and train” workplace safety for employees, etc. Most are priced at $99-$299.
• Live webinars on topics such as the psychology of interviewing, priced at $219, and HR 101 for supervisors, priced at $595.

Offline conferences are a good source of revenue, but don’t generate as much revenue as subscriptions. BLR National Employment Law Update conference tickets sell for $895 each. BLR California Employment Law Update conference tickets are the same price.

Limited banner ad placement, email newsletter advertising, and live event sponsorships generate revenue as well. But, again, the majority comes from recurring subscriptions.

Marketing Tactics

Though BLR does offline marketing, such as direct mailers and advertising, and plenty of email marketing, Baker spoke mostly about BLR’s success with online marketing — specifically the company’s advanced testing strategies.

• A/B and Multivariate Testing — Baker is involved in about 20 to 40 tests per year. Paywalls are the most tested pages on the four portal sites.

  “Paywalls bring in the most conversions. They have the most traffic coming through them,” he said. “That’s why we’re testing that page a lot.” Three of the four paywalls offer a free trial and one, Compensation. BLR.com, goes straight to the paid subscription offer. Offer and premium testing is a staple of BLR’s conversion optimization strategy. So is testing the balance of free vs. paid content to see what converts best.

  Price testing happens occasionally. Baker said they recently tested offering different levels of access to the subscription portals at different prices. As of September 2010, there’s just one level of access plus the custom packages. They’ve also tested monthly vs. annual price terms. Currently it’s an annual price term for HR.BLR.com, Enviro.BLR.com, and Safety.BLR.com. It’s annual and monthly for Compensation.BLR.com. They’ve also tested the number of days in a free trial. Currently it’s 14 days.

  “We started more advanced testing four years ago,” he said. “Nothing, anymore, is done randomly unless the traffic is so low it’s not worth testing.”

  That’s partially because BLR has such a long sales cycle. It takes an average of 30 to 60 days to convert leads into sales. To that end, Baker conducts more advanced tests to find out what offers, page design, premiums, etc. convert better per segment.

  Here’s how it works: “Every lead has a unique tracking code,” Baker said. “We can see what channel, what form, what offer they came through and when they came.” Then, Baker’s team scores each one based on the information the lead provides and the channel through which the lead became a lead. For example, they know the quality of a lead based on the search term the lead came from. They can then conduct tests to learn what works best for that segment. So they know what offer will best convert leads from that segment to purchase.

• Search Marketing — Paid search and SEO are the two greatest drivers of traffic to the BLR sites. PPC ads are used to send traffic mostly to landing pages for each portal or to specific product pages in the online catalog. “We do test to find out which keywords convert better if sending them to a landing page vs. a product page,” Baker said. Traffic to the catalog product pages converts a little better. “We want the best traffic to go there,” Baker added.

  Still, the free news articles written in-house by BLR editors generate the most traffic. “We do news every day,” Baker said. As part of the SEO strategy, editors monitor the sites’ analytics data to see which keywords are most popular. They use that information to guide their editorial focus for news articles and in teaser copy on the portals.

• Social Media — It plays a minor role in BLR’s marketing efforts, partly because tracking and site analytics have shown it’s not worth spending a lot of time in that area. “We do some on Twitter and Facebook,” Baker said. “It’s a lot of testing. Testing time and resources and reach. What’s the market in these mediums? We’re still trying to gather that.” So far, it hasn’t been a hit for BLR in terms of engagement. As of September 2010, only 214 people have “liked” BLR’s Facebook page, 382 people follow BLR on Twitter, and 188 people belong to BLR’s LinkedIn group.

Technology and Vendors Used

BLR’s content management system and ecommerce system is home-grown (i.e. developed in-house by the company’s tech department)

Google Analytics — site analytics software http://www.google.com/analytics/

Google Website Optimizer — site testing software http://www.google.com/websiteoptimizer/

Salesforce — customer relationship management software http://www.salesforce.com/

About Josh Baker

Baker started his online marketing career in 1995. He worked for several affiliate companies before joining BLR in 2006. Prior to 1995 he owned a record company, where he sold music records online.

Here’s what he has to say about selling B2B subscriptions online: “It’s a lot more difficult than business-to-consumer because the impulse buy isn’t there. You have to grab interest, but also nurture them more… you’re really trying to show your knowledge of what the company offers. As a marketer, it really improves your marketing skills.”

Subscription Site Insider’s Quick Analysis

Continuous testing should be a key part of every subscription site’s conversion marketing strategy. And we think BLR sets a good example. The key takeaways are: 1. Test, test, test your paywalls. 2. Test your pricing, offers, and free vs. paid content balance. 3. When you’re ready, start testing to optimize your site per segment. Their SEO strategy is also commendable. Even though they show very little free content, they’ve managed to keep SEO in the forefront by training editors on the importance of keywords… and it’s working.

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