So many marketing companies out there talk about web traffic and sales leads, but at the end of the day all that really matters is conversion rate, conversion rate….conversion rate! Yes, web traffic and nurturing prospects is important, but converting is what pays the bills. Conversion rate is the most important thing to pay attention to when you are an ecommerce company. I thought I would share 3 simple ways you can increase your conversion rate and optimize your return on investment.
- Preview the product: Small family owned businesses now days get a bit caught up in telling their own story. It is true that customers LOVE to hear story of a how a business got started and it is a vital key to establishing a brand. What is more important though it to tempt the prospect with what you are offering. Leave your business story for the “About Us” section of your website and post your top 3-4 products on your home page. Provide links to the product page where customers can easily add them to their shopping cart. Don’t make your customers go hunting your products; keeping your products prominently displaced to reminding them exactly what you have to offer.
- Keep the distractions low. Have you ever walked into a friend’s house and the tv has been on, a child screaming in the background, a blender going and the spouse is in the background running the vacuum? You ran, didn’t you? Forrest Gump running at that. Customers might feel the same way about your website. If your website has too many visual distractions then they run like the wind. Too many colors, images and too much content compete for your visitor’s attention. I am the perfect example of the person you want to design for. I LOVE to shop online and if my user experience is great then I am sure to buy (most of the time I have zero need for whatever I am shopping for). If you overstimulate me though I run because the visual noise is more than I can process. I will close the web page down in less than 8 seconds if the website is more than my little brain wants to handle
- Keep it friendly: I am going to pretend for a second that EVERYONE who has ever come to this website has read my blog on how google algorithm now takes into account mobile responsive sites. If you haven’t it….here is the short version: Google is spanking companies on organic search if their website is not mobile friendly. Now that we have it out of the way, keep your mobile friendly website clean and easy to view. If you are not offering a physical product on the home page then keep the image numbers down to one picture. Don’t ask for people to sign up for an email newsletter on the home page. People shopping on their phone want it to be easy and painless because they are already fighting fat fingers and little letters before they even hit the “checkout” button. Pretty and painless is key to keeping your mobile conversion rate high.
First impressions are lasting impressions. While you might provide a wonderful product or service, if your website does not reflect a wonderful user experience then you could possible be leaving your prospect with the impression that what you have to offer is not going to fit their needs as much as your competitors. Prospects might be under the wrong impression that your product is not an easy product to use.
Take time to calculate your conversion rate. If it is less than 2% then you have an opportunity to improve your user experience and gain new customers.
