May 15, 2018

13 Tactics to Improve Website Conversion Rate

You track many important metrics on your website but the one that really signifies its strengths and weaknesses: the conversion rate. It’s one thing to focus on driving traffic to your site, but it won’t make a difference to your bottom line unless you have visitors converting to customers. To increase your return on investment, implement the following 13 tactics to improve website conversion rate.  

A/B Testing

Before you publish a new page on your site, conduct A/B testing to see which elements perform well and which ones needs tweaking. A/B testing is a great way to ascertain what your target audience wants to see when they navigate to your website. Don’t skip this valuable step in improving your website conversion rate. Yes, it requires some time and attention but it is worth the allocation of resources.

Strong Calls to Actions (CTAs)

Tell your site visitors what action you want them to take. Click a button, fill out a form, read another page. Incorporate expressive action verbs into your CTAs to clearly communicate to users, so they behave on your site the way you intend.

Dedicated Landing Pages

Dedicated landing pages are particularly important for businesses running pay-per-click ad campaigns. These pages send interested visitors directly to the content that caught their attention without having to navigate through multiple pages to find what they want. Plus, you can create a single call to action on the page to drive website conversion rates.

Compelling Value Proposition

A value proposition is the reason a site visitor should convert into a sale with your company. This brief statement explains what differentiates you from your competitors and what value you bring to your customers. The value proposition for your business will differ from the ones you create for you singular products or services, so keep that in mind as your craft these compelling statements that convince users to buy.

Marketing Funnel Content

There are three stages in the marketing funnel: awareness, evaluation, and conversion. During these phases, users require different types of content to convince them to make a purchase. Create and provide the content these individuals need so that they move through the funnel, thus improving your website conversion rate.

Continue the Conversation

Even if users are not on your website, you can entice them to navigate back to it with email, social media, and paid advertising. These content marketing tactics keep your target audience engaged in a conversation about your company and convince them to revisit your website. Regularly providing users with fresh content maintains an ongoing dialogue about your brand that drives website conversion rates steadily over time.

Conversion Elements In the Right Places

Depending on your content, you may have several elements designed to give potential customers the information they are looking for. Make sure to include CTAs and other conversion elements in these areas so that opting-in, signing up, purchasing, or whatever conversion action you want them to take is effortless. Consider including your main CTAs in both your site header and footer to make them easy to find.

Share Reviews

Many shoppers ultimately make their purchase decisions based on the reviews of their fellow consumers. By including reviews directly on your site, users don’t have to navigate elsewhere to learn what their peers think about your business and its products or services. Provide people with this influential content to attract and hold their attention while they decide whether or not to convert.  

Minimize Options

People actually become paralyzed when given too many choices. Too many options on a single page gives users too many opportunities to click around instead of converting. Limit how much you offer on a single page, so you don’t overwhelm your audience.

Simple Copy

Don’t over complicate your website to impress people. Researching your target audience gives you valuable, actionable insight you should apply to writing website copy. For instance, the word selection you would use to engage people with graduate degrees differs greatly than content drafted for high school students. Use their vocabulary and colloquialisms in concise copy that speaks to them on their level.

Prioritize Customer Service

Make it easy for site visitors to find answers to their questions with instant customer service options like live chat or FAQ pages. If users struggle to understand some element of your site, they will click away and likely not return. Show potential customers you value them and their time by providing them with the service they need quickly and clearly.

Review Analytics

Take a look at the data about your website performance. Note which pages are driving conversions and which ones are not achieving goals. Compare what tactics you are using on the successful and failing pages and make adjustments.

Regular Site Maintenance

Slow load times, error pages, and outdated plugins are just a few of the reasons why regular maintenance plays a crucial role in your website conversion site. Users experiencing issues on your site will navigate away rather than wait. Make the user experience quick and responsive so people aren’t discouraged from using your website.

Haven’t updated your WordPress site in a long time? Get in touch with Proactive WP to discuss maintenance plans for your site.