Increasing Website Conversion Rates
Increasing website conversion rates isn’t complex. In fact, it may be as simple as getting a better website. Keep reading to find the secret to a higher return on your investment.
Spend marketing dollars wisely
No one likes to spend money on advertising that doesn’t yield results. While there are no guarantees in this life, there are things you can do to increase the chance of getting more sales from your marketing campaigns.
Website influences behavior
Let’s start with realizing your website has a major impact on user behavior. When someone clicks on your ad and lands on your website, what’s their first impression? If it’s a negative one, they may leave immediately. When that happens, you’ve just thrown ad money down the drain.
Don’t take my word for it. Let’s look at stats that prove user behavior is directly tied to the performance (or non-performance) of your website. Keep in mind that these are only a portion of the studies done and while the numbers vary, the results all point to the same conclusions.
Loading rates affect conversion
A potential customer has clicked your ad and waiting for your website to load. This presents the first opportunity to click away and many do! Studies show 53% leave a web page if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load.
In 2020, 66% of all website visits were on mobile (and this is increasing all the time). While users expect websites to load faster on their phone, they actually load slower. This probably accounts for the high bounce rate among mobile users, which is nearly 50%. When they leave, they rarely come back but they do keep searching.
First impressions count
0.05 seconds. This is how fast someone forms an opinion about your business based on the quality of your website. Furthermore, studies show 75% judge your business’ credibility based solely on your website.
Whether the impression they form is accurate doesn’t matter. Why? Because they know little to nothing about you (yet) and all they have to go on is your website. You only have one chance to make a great first impression so don’t blow it.
Functionality is crucial
Even if your website loads fast and people aren’t scared away by its look, you aren’t off the hook yet. 42% leave a website because of poor functionality which means if it doesn’t work correctly on their phone or tablet, they’re gone.
In addition, 61% are unlikely to return to a site on their phone if they had trouble using it. Things get worse since 40% of these people visit a competitor’s site instead. You’ve just driven a potential customer to your competition and paid money to do it.
Navigation and layout
Website navigation is not something most people think about, yet it greatly affects user behavior. People don’t want to have to hunt for things and studies provide plenty of evidence to support this.
38% of first-time visitors leave if navigation links are hard to find or they find the page payout confusing. To keep people on your website, you must make it easy and fast for them to find what they’re looking for or they get frustrated and leave.
Quality content counts
If you’ve managed to keep a potential customer on your website, your content must answer their questions or provide solutions for them to stay. Plus, content should be in an easy-to-read format (catchy headlines, lists) that displays equally well on phones, tablets, and desktops.
Nearly 8 in 10 people stop engaging with content that doesn’t display well on their device. This usually means the user is on a phone and the text is too small to read or content is cut off because the site isn’t responsive.
Bad website = lost sales
The numbers don’t lie. Having a bad website drives potential customers away before you even have a chance to win them over. Not only are you losing sales, but you’re also throwing away all the money spent on PPC ads.
Even worse, you’re sending potential customers to the competition. Let’s face it. There’s no shortage of websites out there and users keep searching until they find one that works correctly and has the information they need.
Accessibility expands customer base
All the stats mention in this post show the percentage of people that leave when a website doesn’t provide a great user experience. Therefore, just having a website that works for everyone immediately broadens your customer base.
When I say everyone, I also mean the 25% of the population that have a temporary and permanent disability. 71% of them leave a website if it isn’t accessible but do keep searching until they find one that is. Expand your sales by investing in an accessible website that works for everyone.
If you want to learn more about accessibility, read my past post. https://www.sleepydogmedia.com/blog/website-accessibility-impacts-business/
Increasing website conversion rates
Its clear website performance is critical to the effectiveness of any marketing you do. Therefore, investing in website improvements is always a smart decision.
If increasing website conversion rates sound good to you, contact Sleepy Dog Media to hear about our web solutions. We have plans for all sized budgets and businesses.
