How to Increase Your Website’s Conversion Rate

Conversion Rate Optimization

How to Increase Your Website’s Conversion Rate 

Your website’s conversion rate is the percentage of visitors to your website that take a desired action. This action might be filling out a contact form, capturing phone call, online registration or purchasing a product.

Companies that focus on increasing their website’s conversion rate are far more likely to significantly improve their number of sales or qualified leads. Unfortunately, many businesses simply do not have the time or resources necessary to work on conversion optimization. It’s important to understand that doing so is crucial to success. The following tips can help your company increase your website’s conversion rate which will ultimately increase your company’s revenue.

A/B Testing

A/B testing is the most popular method for increasing conversions. A/B testing involves the creation of two pages with slight variations. These variations might include different headlines, page layouts, media or offers. One option involves implementing landing page testing software. Testing software is used to send 50% of visitors to one landing page and 50% to the other. The software then tracks how many visitors take the desired action on each page. This allows you to figure out what works and what does not. For the best results, it’s important to run several A/B tests at all times.

For companies who run paid advertising campaigns like Google AdWords, it is essential that all campaigns have multiple ads per ad group to test ad messaging and landing pages. Each month (or after a certain number of visitors), companies should keep one ad as the control and change the messaging on the 2nd ad for testing purposes. Rinse and repeat for the subsequent months. Ads with a higher click through rate will generate more online conversions.

Make Your Value Proposition Clear

The value proposition on your webpage is the most important factor for conversions. It’s crucial that you are able to make a clear and compelling argument as to why potential customers should take the desired action. When a visitor goes to your website, it is paramount that they understand who you are, what you do and the benefits of what you offer. If your value proposition is not clear, the user will not convert. Websites should use benefit oriented messaging and calls to action to lure the visitor down the conversion path they want to take them down.

Slow Down

Many visitors simply aren’t ready to take action on their first visit to your website. Putting too much pressure on visitors too soon can drive them away. Instead of asking for immediate action, consider developing the relationship slowly. For example, you might offer free information to gain their trust and to build value. Once you’ve become their trusted advisor, it will be much easier to convince them to purchase your product or to fill out a contact form.

If your website contains valuable information, your visitors are more likely to return. The more they return, the more likely they are to take the action you desire. Use strategies like retargeting to get users that left your website to go back. Drive these visitors to different landing pages where you can test messaging options.

Address Potential Concerns

Whenever you offer a product for sale, there are going to be people that question whether or not the purchase will be worth their time and money. This is especially true for higher priced items. It’s important to anticipate and address any potential concerns your customers might have.

Make a list of all possible reasons potential customers might have for doubting your product. Use testimonials, reviews and credentials to prove that what you’re offering is worth their time.

Make Purchases As Easy As Possible

Visitors can quickly lose interest if they can’t easily figure out how to purchase your product, register on your website or contact you for more information. Provide clear instructions and make it possible to complete the desired action in as few clicks as possible. The more clicks it takes for the user to get to where they want to go, the higher the attrition rate. Review Google Analytics on a monthly basis and analyze exit rates, bounce rates, average time on website and number of pages visited to see where your strengths and weaknesses are within your website. Implement conversion funnels to see where users are bailing within the overall check out process.

Remove All Distractions

If visitors to your website have too much to look at, they will be less likely to perform the desired action. It’s important to keep your website as free from distractions as possible. Avoid irrelevant images, large headers, sidebars, etc. A good rule of thumb is “less is more”. Allow the user to focus on what is important and alleviate all of the tertiary information that is not tied to a conversion goal. Advertisers should analyze each page within a website to determine if the visitor has a clear path to the ultimate goal of the website. If the visitor is being directed to webpages with no clear goal, expect a decrease in conversions.

Conversion Pipeline can help increase your website’s conversion rate. Please contact us to learn more.

Michael Delpierre
Latest posts by Michael Delpierre (see all)