Surprisingly, many designers do not take the time to examine how their site’s overall design affects conversion rates. Everything from color and layout to the checkout process has to be taken into consideration when designing a business website. The goal is to make the visitor become a customer, and a repeat customer at that. By following a few simple tips, you can easily, and regularly, increase your conversion rate.
Check Your Design
First, ensure that your landing page is not cluttered and full of distracting elements. If you are not well versed in design and the science behind design, perhaps consider contacting a professional to assist you. Studies have shown that everything from color to shape can have an effect on a customer’s purchasing decisions, so it is best to have someone knowledgeable on your side. A sleek, modern approach works best, in which you show the customer what you are selling, why they should buy it, and how to buy it. Being straightforward is almost always the best approach, as many people do not have time to click through tons of links to get what they want.
Be the Customer
Second, put yourself in the customer’s shoes. Pretend you are a customer and visit your site. Better yet, search for your site and examine the links provided. Do they make sense? Are those pages relevant? As you navigate your site, make a transaction. Possibly write down your experience with every click. Placing yourself in the customer’s shoes will give you a better idea of why visitors are, or are not, becoming customers. Even things like slow loading pages can turn potential customers away, so be mindful of every aspect of the experience.
Keep Your Promises
Also, you should be mindful of the information on your site. Do not over promise and under deliver. You want to make sure that you can back up any claims made on your site, and then some. If you have a contact form on your site, and someone fills it out, and it either gets rejected because of a programming error, or you never get back to them, this is a visitor that most certainly will not only not become a customer, but will not return to your site. You want to gain the visitor’s trust and ensure them of your professionalism. Under promise and over deliver is always the way to go in business.
Eric Wyatt writes on internet marketing and social media. He particularly focuses on conversion rate optimization and landing page design.