Your website can look great, run great, and generate lots of traffic, but is it converting visitors into customers? It’s no secret that conversion rate has the edge on total traffic for directly impacting revenue. That’s why so much research is being conducted on conversion optimization and user experiences—to create a website with features that work to convert. So if you’re looking to update your website’s conversion optimization strategy, consider these four features you might be overlooking:
New Site Content
What would you think about a website whose last blog post was a month ago? How about a full year ago? You might think the company got too busy to prioritize social updates, or even that the company was stagnating or completely inactive, much like its site content. These thoughts do not breed customer confidence. So whether it’s through a quick quote, a link to an interesting news item, or a regular blog post, visitors who see life in your company will be more likely to convert. So aim to keep your site content regular, relevant, and relatable.
Convincing Social Proof
The most effective social proof shows potential customers that you do great work, and surprise—a simple “telling” testimonial is not best for every business. Testimonials are great for sharing words from satisfied customers, but they can’t speak directly to the needs of potential customers. For service providers and sellers of high-investment products, case studies are a better choice to provide real-world value to would-be customers. Case studies share the start-to-finish tale of clients, detailing how you helped them achieve their goals through customer service and quantifiable results. The key is to connect with potential customers beyond “take our word for it.” And whether you choose testimonials or case studies, be sure to sprinkle them throughout your website on any page that might drive a sale.
Fast Loading Speed
You may not think about loading speed affecting conversion rates, but speed makes a big difference to site visitors, down to the second. Most mobile web users will only stick around for 6–10 seconds waiting for a page to load. During that time, the conversion rate decreases by 7% for every 1-second delay in page response. So it’s critical to get your site loading as quickly as possible. To evaluate your site’s loading time and discover ways to improve it, check out Google PageSpeed, a free tool to help you optimize your site speed.
Simple Ordering Process
Are your site visitors getting lost in an overcomplicated conversion funnel? Your page flow should be as simple as possible to guide visitors to the “buy now” or “request a quote” button. If you suspect visitors are getting stuck in the funnel, tools such as Google Analytics can help you find the bottleneck. From the landing page to the transaction confirmation page, you can define the sequence of pages in the conversion funnel that you expect visitors to follow. Then you can analyze traffic to see where visitors are going astray. If you’re losing a disproportionate amount of visitors at one step in the process, you can focus on optimizing that page to keep the flow going. The solution may be as simple as placing a button more prominently or requiring less personal information during the purchase/contact process.
As with the success of any conversion optimization process, the key is understanding your customers and testing, testing, testing until you craft a site that best meets their needs. SoCalWizards can help you through this process. We provide training on Google Analytics, with focus on the reports you can use to analyze your visitors and to make changes that will convert your visitors into customers.
Ready to transform your digital presence with marketing that delivers real results? Discover our unique approach to digital marketing that prioritizes not just traffic, but leads and sales that truly matter to your business. SoCalWizards has been serving businesses big and small since 2007! We are proud to offer digital marketing services, including Search Engine Optimization, Pay Per Click (Paid) Management (we are a Google Premier Partner!), Content Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Email Marketing, and other services. Schedule a Call with a Digital Marketing Expert for a free digital marketing audit. Act now to elevate your digital strategy! Remember to read our other Blog Posts and learn more About Us.