What does it mean to increase website conversions?
Put simply:
To increase website conversions, your website must do a better job at converting a casual BROWSER (visitor) into a qualified LEAD, who acts.
Although the specific “action” you’d like prospects to take depends on your website’s goals, of course, and the type of site it is (blog or informational, direct sales, e-commerce shop, etc.), understand this:
And that’s key.
I’m redundantly breaking website conversion down in this way to get you thinking about the critical questions:
What is your website designed TO DO?
What goal should your website achieve: ACTION or SALE?
Now, keep those objectives in mind while we review one way to increase website conversions:
When people go to your website, they actually expect to achieve a certain goal.
The goal or action you want visitors to take, and the goal they are there to achieve are the same (if your marketing is cohesive); you just talk about them in different ways.
For example:
You want visitors to buy your grant writing book.
They want information about grant writing.
While they probably didn’t come to (necessarily) buy anything, they have come in search of information.
You can capitalize on that fact and increase website conversions by leading them right to the goods.
Increase website conversions by asking these three tough questions of your company website:
Question #1: Does my website help visitors easily achieve their intended goal? Can they get around (navigate) easily… or are they easily lost?
If you’re wondering how you’d know the answer to that… just think about the inquiries you’ve received from your website, and if you still receive certain inquiries despite the info being present on your website.
Important Sidebar: Making things easier to find on your site isn’t the only way to know if you could increase website conversions.
Why not?
Well, many visitors contact a company directly WITHOUT ever visiting the website. This is especially true when using local marketing, as when a customer does a search from their mobile device, they may not even see it. They could be calling your phone number directly from your Google Map listing. Or they could be calling you directly from your listing in a local directory, like Yelp or ApartmentGuide.com.
This is why it’s so important to analyze your website analytics! You need to know what visitors are already doing on your website before you can make a determination about how to increase website conversions. ツ
End Sidebar
Back to whether or not YOUR company website makes it easy for visitors to do what they intend.
All too often, I’ve gotten lost on a website, or spent lots of time digging for info that shouldn’t have been “hidden.” If I really like the site, or believe in what they’re doing, I sometimes take time to write to ask how to locate what I need.
Unfortunately then, the site owner usually feels they must explain—in a slightly condescending fashion, of course—just how easy it is to find what I’d searched for, if I’d have only searched “better.” Because all I had to do was “jump over that crevasse, dive into this murky swamp, race across this corner of the jungle, and click three times on this link RIGHT HERE!”
And then, there was that info… hidden in plain sight.
Sigh.
Listen, don’t be “that guy.” Or gal.
Question #2: Does your website take more than 1 to 2 seconds to begin loading, causing prospects to bail before even seeing your offer?
Think a few extra seconds don’t really matter?
Firefox.com reduced load time of their site by a mere 2.2 seconds… and increased downloads of their browser by 15.4%.
That.
Is.
HUGE.
How would a 15% jump in website conversions affect your company’s take-home profit each month?
Question #3: What info does your average website visitor most want to find… and can they find it right away?
In other words, do your visitors know EXACTLY how to find what they came for as soon as they land on your company website? If you’re the least bit uncertain, get with a business Web designer who understands results-focused design and how to improve website performance. I recommend discussing ways to better streamline, focus, and direct your website traffic.
The Reveal:
If your small business website makes it anything but super-easy to find what’s needed, your visitors will bail. Increase website conversions by keeping your company goals front and center with every single change you make to your website… and with every single Web page you have designed.
This article was syndicated from Business 2 Community: Increase Website Conversions: 3 Ways To Influence Action
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