You put your blood, sweat and tears in your online presence and do everything “by the book,” right?
So why aren’t the clicks rolling in?
Although most of us understand that there is no “turkey” solution to converting prospects and leads, diagnosing the problem is much easier said than done. After all, making that sale or driving that click requires a combination of elements to come together.
Messaging. Timing. The list goes on and on.
That said, marketers shouldn’t feel totally paralyzed or powerless if their conversion rate isn’t what they want it to be. In fact, there are some fairly common threads between businesses that are struggling to convert regardless of your business or industry.
What sort of mistakes and missteps are we talking about, though? Consider the following four pitfalls as a sort of self-diagnosis for what might be lacking in your online presence and what you can do to fix it for the sake of your conversion rate.
A Lackluster Social Presence
Reality check: not everything that impacts your conversion rate happens on-site.
Having no social presence is a massive red flag in the eyes of your prospects and leads. Like it or not, prospective customers are researching you via social media and having absolutely nothing in the social sphere inevitably places your business below the likes of your competition.
Furthermore, social media is an ever-growing channel for acquiring customers in the first place. From content marketing to social selling, the simple act of putting yourself out there via social can work wonders without requiring too much legwork.
If you already have content and value to share with the world, you’re golden. To ensure that your social presence have the professional vibe that wins over customers, also consider how the following can help:
- Helpful content, resources and creatives such as icons that allow you to look your best on social media
- Social proof in the form of followers and advocates who are willing to share and engage with your content
- Positive comments and customer content you can collect through social media you can use as social proof on-site (more on that later!)
Spammy Lead Capture Forms and Pops
Pop-ups and lead capture forms don’t have to be inherently spammy, although they can give off that vibe if they aren’t presented correctly.
Whatever platform or opt-in service you might be using, don’t just rely on settings “out of the box.” Likewise, consider the elements of design and imagery (think: colors, fonts, calls-to-action) which will entice clicks versus forcing people away.
For example, some must-have elements of an effective lead capture form include:
- A distinct button (in terms of color and copy) for your CTA that stands out from the rest of the page
- Only necessary form fields without anything “extra” that creates too much work for leads (think: email and first name is more than likely enough)
- An accompanying image or icon for whatever your lead magnet might be (think: an e-book preview or video screenshot)
Lack of Additional Opt-in Opportunities
Simply put, businesses can’t afford to be shy when it comes to opt-in opportunities and calls-to-action.
But if you’re relying on little more than pop-ups to do the legwork for you, you’re inevitably holding back your conversion rate. Some addition places to include additional opt-in opportunities include:
- On the header, footer or sidebar of your website
- In-text forms and CTAs within your blog posts
- Dedicated opt-in landing pages you can promote offsite (think: on social media or within YouTube descriptions)
Of course, the key to making these opportunities work is by not making them too in-your-face.
Think of your opt-ins as invitations rather than hard sells: people should be able to reject them without feeling burnt or turned off by your messaging. By writing conversion-centric copy that emphasizes benefits and taking action, people will be more compelled to actually click through organically versus sleeping on your messages or seeing them as spam.
No Trust-Building Pages
Consumers today have every right to be skeptical of businesses online, especially if they’ve never heard of you before. For the sake of both introducing yourself and reinforcing your positive results with people, having sections on-site dedicated to building trust is a brilliant move for improving conversions.
Here are some examples of surefire elements you should include on-site to establish trust with your target audience:
- A reviews and testimonials page which includes authentic feedback from satisfied customers or clients
- An “About Us” section that highlights the human side of your brand, including your story and experiences
- User-generated content such as customer photos or comments (could be part of your testimonials page)
- A “guarantee” page which includes security badges, a return policy and other “just in case” language to give people peace of mind
Takeaway
At the end of the day, encouraging more conversions often boils down to taking a series of steps versus trying to “fix” your web presence in one fell swoop. By starting with the foundation of tips above, you set up the building blocks of conversion-centric online presence that products positive returns versus bounced traffic and lost clicks.