Website Tip: How to Turn Browsers into Buyers—Six Tips

Are you frustrated by low website conversion numbers?

Maybe it’s not your product or service. You may just need to rethink your website.  

Even though your website is generating a steady flow of traffic it’s not enough. Did you know that half of all visitors spend less than 15 seconds on a website? Fifteen seconds? –That is terrible! Think of all the money and time you’ve spent driving quality leads to your site, only to have them leave.

Is there anything you can do to keep change this? Yes, you bet there is.

My clients often obsess about their click-through rates, and how much they’re paying for traffic. Yet, they forget to address the most obvious part of the sales process—their websites! It always strikes me as odd when business owners are willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars on marketing their sites, but they expect outstanding results from something they threw together over a weekend for less than a hundred bucks.

This isn’t the way to get customers.

I get it. Not every business owner has the skills or resources to build a custom website from the ground up. It’s ok. There are plenty of platforms available that provide the tools you need to create a quality website on your own. Although, it won’t be easy and quick, it will be worth it, as long as you go about it in the right way.

Use these six tips to turn your website visitors into customers.

• Optimize your site’s loading speed. Nearly half of all desktop users expect a page to load in under two seconds. And 40% of mobile users will leave a page if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load.

That’s quick! This means graphic-intense sites are out. If yours requires graphics, you may want to consider using CSS sprites. Investing in a good CDN service can also improve your load time. Experiment with a free tool like Google’s PageSpeed Insights to gain an understanding of your site’s load times.

Create great content. Great content provides your visitors the information they want. So, what do they want? While the specifics differ from visitor to visitor, every one of them wants a relevant solution to a problem. It’s the reason they came to your site in the first place. Give it to them immediately. In order to do this, you must ensure each of the pages on your site are focused on just one topic. This is the reason single-page sites don’t convert as well as sites with multiple pages that use a single page to focus on one topic.

• Design effective site navigation. Visitors don’t want to fumble around your site looking for the information they need. They’re more likely to return to the search engine and look for a better organized site. Your site’s navigation must be simple and obvious. Limit menus across the top or on the side of a page. Text works better than images. Text-based links are search-friendly and aren’t as confusing as images. Keep the number of menu items to a reasonable amount, and don’t use drop-down menus unless absolutely necessary.
• Keep it up to date. Nothing turns off a visitor more than outdated information. Keep your site fresh. Besides adding new content, go through the older content on your site and make sure all of it is still correct and useful. Are the links still working? Are there any outdated phrases? Change them. Delete any discontinued products or services. Review your Terms and About Us sections from time to time to make sure everything is still accurate.
• Streamline purchasing. Don’t make visitors jump through hoops to become a customer. And, don’t force them to become a member, or to share non-essential information before making a purchase. It’s a good idea to provide enough payment methods to give your customers options, but there’s no need to offer all of them. Try to give your customers a seamless buying experience by keeping them on your site instead of turning them over to Amazon or PayPal sites to pay.
• Use a clear call-to-action (CTA). Your visitor arrives at your page, reads your content, but, now what should he do? There’s a high chance that he’ll leave your site and go about his day. What can you do to prevent this? This is where a well-written CTA comes into play. A good CTA will increase your conversion rates. However, 70% of small businesses don’t include them on their websites. They’re just leaving money on the table and walking away. Learn how to write a great CTA and include it in all of your content.

Like most things in business, building a website that converts browsers into buyers is about putting the customer first.

For more information about developing a website for your business, contact Nachman Networks in Washington DC, Northern Virginia & Maryland at (703) 600-3301 or sales@nachnet.com.