Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is such a big buzzword. At least twice a month I am approached about doing SEO for an existing or potential client. As we begin to delve into their goals though, it often turns out that what they really want is Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO).
And it turns out that CRO isn’t much of a buzzword even though it is a critical piece of digital marketing. If you want to get more leads through your website, you first have to know if you are getting leads from your website.
If you know how many leads you are getting from your website, we can then look at the number of visitors to your site and, with simple math, calculate your conversion rate:
If you have 100 visitors to your site and get 1 lead, your conversion rate is:
1 (lead) ÷ 100 (visitors) = 0.01 then multiply by 100 for the percentage = 1% (conversion rate)
Sound low? It is. Conversion rates vary widely but if you have a higher than 1% conversion rate, you are doing fantastic.
Now that we have a conversion rate established, we can go about the process of optimizing the conversion rate. There are many things you can test or try. Sometimes it is simply a matter of changing colors on a button or call to action (yes, that might be all it takes). Other things that you can do include:
- Removing unnecessary steps (fewer clicks often increases conversion rates)
- Creating better / stronger calls to action (CTAs)
- Use design to clarify what the next step is
- Remove unnecessary CTAs – if they make it to a form page, remove opportunities to click away
- Don’t ask for unnecessary information – growing your email list? You don’t need a physical address.
- Add urgency to the CTA – “Offer good through Saturday!”
- Don’t your CTA lower on the page or even on a different page
- Use testimonials – others “tooting your horn” will work better than you doing it yourself
- Make sure your page loads quickly – if it is slow to load, people leave
- If you have the staff resources to manage it, add a chatbot to your site so you can interact in real time
All of these, and a whole lot more, are ways to increase your conversion rate, increase customer satisfaction and grow your business.
If you want to see what might work on your site, give us a call or fill out this form