We’re all in the online marketing game to achieve tangible results – that’s either getting ever-increasing levels of traffic to our sites for branding reasons, or to sell products and services directly from them. It’s all about conversion rates; how you can convert a causal visitor into an actual customer.
The SEO job of getting people to your site is one thing, but enticing them to do something while there – sign up to a newsletter, read a blog or buy something – is equally as challenging. So consider some of the following tips for your site to help propel your brands and realise greater success online.
Let’s begin with your homepage, as that’s where most people start their journey with your organisation’s online presence. We’ve had a look at a number of surveys, notably from KISSmetrics, an online marketing and testing firm, and it’s clear that having a well-designed homepage – or landing page – is the key to enticing people to stay with you. What does “well-designed” mean?
At the most basic level, it means not bombarding visitors with all manner of text and images, which just leaves them confused and turns them right off. Think Google. The search giant’s homepage has nothing on it apart from a search box and links to some of its services. Google commands around three-quarters of global search while its page-stuffed rivals are left floundering. So de-clutter.
Studies also show that conversation rates can soar by over 100% if an image of a person is placed on a product or service webpage. It literally puts a human face in an online, high-tech space that can often be anything but human, making your site less cold and distant. Use stock images to suit your products; you can get them from any number of online providers.
You also need to be paying huge attention to your calls to action. These are fundamental to boosting conversation rates, so don’t be shy about them. Use them in blog posts, and think about placing them elsewhere on your site. In case studies carried out by KISSmetrics, for example, some firms experienced close to a 600% increase in conversions by putting calls to action in prominent parts of their websites – such as in a box above the fold.
