Posts Tagged ‘Conversion optimization’

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Do You Have a Powerful Call to Action?

Posted by Brent on June 26th, 2009

Does your website perform they way it is supposed to?  Do your visitors see the content you want them to and take action?  Web design and conversion optimization is all about maximizing your website’s potential to convert traffic into some kind of attainable and measurable goal.  Whether the goal is to collect emails, registrations, downloads, or purchases all the same rules apply.

Make your message clear

Make it simple

Make it easy

Here are a few suggestions to enure your visitors take action and become customers! 

Use simple but compelling language to communicate your message and its value.  Then compliment that message with a large and noticeable “call to action” so the user understands what the next step is.  The image below shows a good example of this:

skype

 

The use of space, color, and page layout are very important.  Below is a great example of a good blend of color and space.  The more space you have around the call to action “buttons” the better.  Studies show that the more cluttered a page is the more likely the user is to get confused and not understand what you want them to do.

space

Notice how clean the page is and that a couple options are given.  The use of space is done purposefully to provide clarity and simplicity.

Other suggestions to improve conversions on websites and landing pages include:

  • Trust factors – let the user know it is safe to enter their information or download your product
  • Simple bullet pointed content – don’t make the user read to long paragraphs, keep them moving
  • Compelling design and images – the pages of course should look clean and compelling to keep bounce rates low
  • Large buttons – size does matter
  • 3 to 5 step process – using a simple “step” process helps clarify what the user needs to do to complete your “sales cycle”

buy now

From Retail to E-commerce: Focus on Customer Loyalty

Posted by Brent on May 11th, 2009

With so much information out there about Internet marketing and how to improve a company’s online brand exposure, there seems to have been a gradual removal of “customer loyalty” from that discussion.  One of the most important aspects to improving conversions for an e-commerce platform (or any website for that matter) is through enhanced customer experiences and loyalty focused programs.  The happier your curstomers are, the more they will buy from you (or refer people to you).  The goal here is to increase the percent of your overall sales in the “repeat customer” category.  It is much easier to grow revenue from current customers that to spend more time and money attracting new ones (although this is very important as well).

Let’s back up for a minute and consider the dramatic shifts we are seeing in retail VS. online.  The current economic conditions have placed strains on traditional retailers and caused substantial increases in online spending.  The online consumer is now becoming more savvy and expects a lot from the service/product provider.  As more and more traditional retailers either move their business online or at least create an online store to sell their products, the focus needs to not only shift to Internet marketing strategies but also customer loyalty strategies.  So much emphasis has been on how to drive traffic to e-commerce sites that we have seen visits go up, but not  conversions. 

Conversion optimization involves getting the right kind of traffic as well as ensuring that a large portion of that traffic leads to a sale.  Some online companies out there are doing this quite well but not simply becauase their Internet marketing strategies are so good…it is because their database of happy customers keeps growing.  Let’s look for example at www.freshdirect.com.  This company has been providing online grocery shopping to the New York City area for over five years.  One of the main reasons their numbers keep growing is not because they are spending so much time and money driving traffic to their website.  It is beacuse each day, senior management meets to review analytics and customer transactions to see where things are working and where things need improvement…and then of course to discuss what is being done to improve the areas where they fall short.  They also conduct about 150 customer surveys each year.  This might seems excessive or even scary to some companies but over time it makes for happy customers.  Your critics can be your best source of constructive feedback!

More about conversion optimization:

The best way to ensure that your traffic is going to convert into business involves several key factors:

  • Understanding your customer base in great detail
  • Ensuring your traffic is targeted and you methods for driving traffic support that goal
  • Continually analyze your online platform through focus groups, A/B split testing, etc.
  • Konw where your conversions points occur and where people leave your site and why – then work to improve these areas
  • Always be improving your sales cycle and customer experience
  • Ask for feedback and make improvements based on realistic suggestions
  • If you are asking for feedback, get involved in these conversations with your customers
  • Test, Improve, then test again – use your analytics…the numbers won’t lie.


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Don’t Get Caught Off Guard

Posted by Brent on April 13th, 2009

Don’t get caught off guard by poor marketing efforts.  Companies in all kinds of industries are now realizing the importance of a cost effective and creative online marketing approach.  It is also important to note that an integrated approach based on conversions is the most powerful.  A poorly designed and executed marketing plan will catch you off guard.  Without a properly managed Internet marketing strategy, once you realize your efforts have not been optimal, it will be too late. 

art_polar_bear

Jumping in head first without a plan will result in a disappointing result!  (FYI…this woman from the Berlin zoo was rescued and is recovering).  It is recommended to hire a well rounded and experienced Internet marketing agency.  A good firm will review your business goals and help you formulate a plan that will ensure reaching and exceeding these goals.  This is much different than simply hiring and SEO firm and running a poorly managed PPC campaign to your home page.  Sending traffic to a site is useless until that traffic turns into conversion, sales, and positively affects the bottom line. 

What is a fully integrated online marketing approach?

Sounds more expensive right?  Sometimes it can be but we are really referring to ensuring that an existing or potential marketing plan has components that all compliment one another and that there is a consistent message.  This includes offline marketing channels too.  The entire plan should send the same message and have the same calls to action.  A combination of efforts such as conversion optimization, organic search engine optimization (improving volume and quality of traffic through the natural search engine placements), PPC advertising (with optimized landing pages), email marketing, and social media would be an example of an integrated approach.  This could also include offline efforts such as print and radio.  As long as the message is clear and landing pages are used properly to receive incoming traffic all efforts should compliment one another.  Monthly analysis of each component ensure seeing what areas are working and which ones need improvement.

All of this does not have to cost an arm and a leg.  A good Internet marketing company will help you pick and choose which elements are the most appropriate and that will produce the best ROI.

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Conversion Optimization Basics

Posted by Brent on April 10th, 2009

Conversion optimization was born out of the need of lead generation and e-commerce internet marketers to improve their website’s results. As competition grew on the web during the early 2000′s, Internet marketers had to become more measurable with their marketing tactics. They began experimenting with website design and content variations to determine the layouts, copy text, offers and images will improve their conversion rate. – Wikipedia

Conversion optimization is more important than ever as companies move more of their marketing budgets online seeking more cost effective ways to achieve their goals.  The approach has two angles.  The first starts with researching the industry and target markets of the company in need of improved conversions.  Once the data has been collected, a more targeted marketing message can be planned.  Secondly, comprehensive testing such as A/B testing is done to monitor results and make adjustments to continually improve the conversion rates. 

Conversion optimization is about achieving business goals and gaining the best possible ROI from the marketing efforts.  Here is a chart that outlines the basics:

conversion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The foundation behind conversion optimization is website design.  Once you have the marketing message put together and before you start running the campaign and testing results, you have to design the site and landing pages accordingly to achieve your goals.  Like anything esle there are some best pratices to follow when putting together a landing page.  The basics include the following:

  • Keep it simple and focus on the message
  • Message must be associated with ad campaign
  • Keyword association
  • Clear and obvious calls to action
  • Simple content (bullet points)
  • Trust factors
  • Short registration forms
  • Must be well designed and compelling

The bottom line is that a good Internet marketing company will first help you define your business goals, then help you assemble the message, and then put together the campaign, launch it and test results constantly.  Continually updating your landing pages will improve results dramatically which will lead to a well spent marketing budget!

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Testing for conversions

Posted by Ceci on March 23rd, 2009

Having a tracking and reporting tool installed to your website is a very important factor for conversion based websites and your SEO strategy. Make sure you have a tracking code on your site to track visitors and their behavior on your site. For example the bounce rate tells you how many people are coming to your website and leaving within 5 seconds this way you are able to identify which web pages are turning away the most visitors and which are making most conversions.

With today’s internet marketing technology you can run tests on different pages of your website and let your visitors decide the best version of that page. A – B testing serves the user 2 different versions of a particular page on a random basis. This way instead of just going with a gut feeling you will actually have the statistics from your users to prove usability.

The first step is to think of 2 variations of your page. The current one as the first and the second you can make a few small changes to the page. Maybe try changing photos or making links into buttons using large calls to action. Using tools like the Google website optimizer you can test your changes by randomly showing different visitors different versions of your site. These tools will then report back to you about the conversions and goals reached by each design. From these reports you can decide which design had the most valuable conversions dependant on the goals you set for your pages. These can be sales, links clicked, forms filled, etc.

Many think that there might be too many aspects of the website to change so why test at all? This is true there are many different components to each and every website but you can just start with your current most prevalent call to action on your page. Try changing simple links to buttons with calls to action. Try cleaning up the page to not be text heavy and insert some great images relevant to your business.
• Have a friend take a look! If you have a friend that doesn’t know your business very well have them take a look at your website. Give them 10 seconds to look and then ask them what you think the site is about?

• Give, Give, Give! Tell the user why they should stay on your website. Tell them the benefits of being your website: to look younger, to be healthier, to save money.

• Make your website relevant! Make sure that all of your client see your website as relevant starting with the content and pictures on the site! Make them personal and relevant to your website and your brand.

• Users love to shop and that is why they are on your website don’t make them search. Make it easy for the user to find what they want and make it even easier for the to convert. If you are basing your conversions on sales make the “buy Now” prominent if your conversations are tracked by sign ups make sure to have a quick and easy form on every page!

Why are Landing Pages so Important?

Posted by Brent on March 5th, 2009

We have talked a lot about conversion optimization and improving ROI for your marketing investments.  This of course has never been more important.  Most companies (though everyone is negotiating the waters of the rough economy) still undertsand they need to find cost effective and creative ways to market their products and services to their target audiences.  Understanding that marketing is essential is just the first step…spending your budget wisely is a whole new ball game.

There is no point is spending a a bunch of time and money building a fancy website if it is not optimized for the search engines.  Additionally, there is no point is spending time and resources driving traffic to a website or web page that is not set up to convert traffic into business.  A good Internet marketing company will help a client define their business goals (from an online prespective) and work backwards from there.  Defining these goals first is essential so that your website can be designed to reflect the conversion fatcors that will support these goals.

Remember that your website, and pages within your website should be designed to support all outside marketing efforts including online marketing like organic search engine optimization and pay per click advertising, as well as offline marketing like print ad or direct mail.  Let’s assume a website itself is set up well for basic conversions and has the proper calls to action necessary to take people through the sales cycle.  Even if this is the case, it does not mean that your PPC ads or print ads should be directing visitors to the home page of your site.  This is where landing pages come into play. 

A good landing page strategy has multiple advantages:

  • Helps you focus on the ad campaign rather than redeveloping the actual website
  • Gives you the opportunity to test multiple landing pages for optimial conversions
  • Gives you the ability to constantly change just one page based on goals and conversions
  • Can increase conversion by up to 40%
  • Helps you focus on a specific message and call to action
  • Can be used to capture business leads without any extra steps

What are the main components for landing pages:

  • Clean, simple, but compelling design
  • Very specific call to action (i.e. 7 day FREE Trial – REGISTER NOW) – in more than one place
  • Simple content (short paragraphs or bullet points are best)
  • The use of a Multi Step Process Guide (i.e. 3 Step Process)
  • A registration form is necessary
  • Trust Factors (i.e. certifications, testimonials, etc.)
  • The use of the same keywords used in your advertisements

Here is an example of a landing page we designed for a client running a PPC campaign for their new Loft condos in San Francisco, CA.  Notice the simpe design, bullet pointed info, clear call to action, and short registration form on the right side of the page: 

The goal for this client is of course to capture registrations from interested potential buyers for their property.  This helps them build a database and get their sales teams involved in building relationships directly with the customer.

So remember, when launching new marketing efforts, even if you have just redesigned your website, consider using landing pages to support the campaign.  It will help you target the customer better and improve ROI.

Landing Pages and Conversion Optimization

Posted by Brent on February 13th, 2009

Conversion optimization:  The process of manipulating a web page to improve the visitor’s perception of the page and increase the conversion rate.  A “landing page” is generally referred to when speaking about the page a visitor is directed to when clicking on an advertisement, email marketing piece, or search engine result link.  The page should be a logical extension of the ad, support the “promises” made in the ad with more detail, and have clear and simple calls to action.

Three types of LPO:

  • Associative content targeting:  the page content is dynamically modified for each user based on parameters such as search criteria and geographical location.
  • Predictive content targeting:  the page content adjusts based on any “known” information about the user such as demographics, browsing patterns, and possibly purchasing behavior.
  • Consumer directed targeting (social targeting):  page content is created using public information through metrics based on reviews, ratings, referrals, tagging, etc.

(Wikipedia)

Below is an example of a nicely laid out landing page with a very clear call to action.  Notice how the layout gives the visitor a very simple multi-step process, additional content about the page and offering, a short registration form, and the appropriate “trust” factors associated with the serrvice.  All of these elements exist to improve conversion rates.

All website design elements should define a specific conversion.  The client should be first asked to lay out their business goals and goals associated with their online presense and Internet marketing plan.  If you haven’t defined the conversion factor you can not take the necessary steps to design the site appropriately.  The website and its landing pages are probably the most crucial element and the key foundation to the online marketing strategy.  There is no point in building a fancy site that noone will see.  More importantly there is no point in spending time and resources to drive traffic to a site that is no set up to convert visitors into customers.  Until “traffic” is converted, it should always be considered a cost, not an asset.

Earning Your Visitor’s Trust

Posted by Brent on February 4th, 2009

We can all work very hard to drive as much traffic as we can get; but in the long run is it really helping our businesses grow?  It certainly can!  Earning the trust of the visitors your bing to your site applies for all kinds of websites whether they are e-commerce related, B2B, or just information resources.  Getting people to your site can be hard enough and take a lot of strategy, planning, and budget…why waste all that time and money by not earning their trust when they get there.  This is why using a knowledgable Internet marketing company can help you properly position your site for rankings as well as conversions.

Let’s assume your site is B2B related and your campany is interested in not only driving more targetd traffic but also converting that traffic into potential customers.  We have talked before about conversion optimization and the science behind it, but let’s focus first on making the visitor feel comfortable.  (Please keep in mind that some of the suggestions listed here are not yet used on this site.  We are launching a new site that will include everything – so stay tuned!)

How do you earn the trust of that potential customer?

  • You want to first make them feel comfortable and engage them enough to dig deeper.  Your home page or landing pages should be interesting and offer specific information on your products or services.  Having a professional and clean look to your site will let the visitor know that you might be a reputable company and encourage them to keep looking.
  • Use testimonials from former or current clients that have used some or all of your services.  You don’t want to use testimonials that are too long so have the customer just highlight the reason they chose your company, what you did for them, and why they are so pleased.
  • It is usually best for conversions to keep things simple and focused.  Each visitor will go through a sales process while navigating your site.  You want to keep them engaged and let them know you are a trustworthy source.  Consumers are more savvy these days so be transparent in your “pitch”.  If they want to go elsewhere to find the real scoop, they can and will.  If they decide that they are not yet convinced during their time on your site, they might leave and never come back.
  • Any types of relevant associations or credible groups your company is involved with should be displayed on the site…possible in the footer.
  • Use video content and clean images of your people, products, and services.  If you have an event, consider taking video and posting the video on your site.  Consumers want to know who they are dealing with which is why photos of management teams are good too (again, I know we do not have this up yet but we will!).
  • Having a clearly accessible privacy policy and safety measures are especially good for e-commerce sites.
  • If your company is partnered with other recognizable firms, consider posting their logos and business descriptions on your site.  The same should be done for your clients, especially if you have some big brand names under your belt.

We did not really get into actual conversions this time but it has been discussed before.  Earning the trust of the visitor is really one of the main underlying factors in generating conversions through your website.  Your company’s website should act as a sales and marketing tool all by itself…so set it up accordingly!

Conversion Optimization and Persuasion Architecture

Posted by Brent on January 25th, 2009

Conversions

Conversions

Conversion optimization is basically a methodology and series of specific practices designed to create more customers using your various marketing strategies.  Conversion optimization is not necessarily new, but it has definitely advanced in the world of Internet marketing.  Let me put that another way…advances in technology and Internet marketing have allowed conversion optimization to take on a whole new meaning.

Persuasion architecture in this context is essentially the science behind creating customer roadmaps and coordinating your marketing campaigns accordingly.  Before true conversion optimization can begin, a company must define its business and revenue goals so that it can specify what a “conversion” means to them.  A conversion can mean different things to different companies.  Often times one company could have many different “conversion” based goals depending on the marketing strategies and the sales cycle. 

The whole idea behind using true conversion optimization for Internet marketing is to allow all the pieces of the puzzle to come together to reach a common goal.  Or you could break it down it these simple terms:

  • Why have a website if it does not properly communicate your message?
  • How are you going to communicate that message unless you invest in building traffic to your site?
  • Once you have the traffic, how are you using persuasion architecture and conversion optimization to turn the traffic into customers?

Conversion optimization should not just be considered for search engine optimization, website development, or when operating a pay per click campaign.  This concept applies across all marketing efforts.  One of the major ways companies large and small fall short when coordinating their efforts, is that they do not all support and compliment one another.  All offline and online marketing efforts must be coordinated.  For example, a print ad promoting a specific offer must guide the customer to a landing page that supports that offer and gives more details and calls to action.  A PPC ad should not click through to a home page but rather an optimized landing page engineered specifically to the keywords, titles, and descriptions used in the campaign.  The page should have information specific to the target audience and a call to action that will foster conversions.

As long as all the strategies compliment one another and have conversion optimization at the root of everything, you will be more likely to hit your goals.  One of the best ways to do this is use an Internet marketing company that can implement all the strategies for you.  When everything is coordinated through one source you are less likely to waste time and money!

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