One of the most important factors when striving for a successful online business is the conversion rate. Whether it is CRO Dallas or CRO “wherever” conversion rate optimization is a huge deal. Optimizing for maximum sales is the best way to get the most out of your online business.
The difference between a website that is built for looks and one that is built for action is whether or not the designer took the time to implement common search engine optimization and conversion rate optimization practices. If your web designer is not asking you questions about what your business needs to be successful, you might want to pick a new one.
Conversion Rates Explained
If you are wondering what conversion rates are and what they have to do with you, we’ve got answers.
The way that the conversion rates on a website are measured is by comparing the number of visitors to the website to the number of people that follow through with a purchase. When a visitor converts from a simple visitor into a paying customer it is considered a “conversion.” The higher the conversions for a website, the more money is made.
Some of the reasons that convert visitors to customers are:
- Attractive website
- Trustworthy environment
- Engaging content
- Clear path to shopping cart
- Calls to action
There is no doubt that conversion rates are directly related to web design and the way that the website is structured.
What is Conversion Rate Optimization?
When we talk about conversion rate optimization we are referring to a set of tasks and experiments that expose weaknesses and strengths of the website. In order to properly optimize for maximum conversion rates there are some simple components that help in the process:
- Collecting data
- Analyzing data
- Running tests and comparisons
- Collecting and comparing data
- Discovering what works best
- Discarding what does not work
The best way to optimize anything is to collect data about it and see where problems are and see where things are going well.
One of the more popular ways that agencies can see what is working and what is not is to implement an A/B comparison test and analyze the data that they collect during the process.
This kind of comparison is almost like a vote. The developer creates two different pages that stem from different options that a user has to choose from on the website. The option that shows the most promising results stays in the running, and the one that does not do so well gets thrown out.
After a while of comparing, changing, rearranging, and analyzing information the developer will use what they learn to fine-tune the flow of the site so that it is more and more streamlined to guide visitors from the first landing page through the payment portal and into a successful sale.
What Does Website Design Have to do With it?
In order to generate conversions there has to be something on the website that attracts visitors and engages them to stick around the site and see more. If a website is not attractive, and it does give users the desire to look around at more stuff, it is not doing its job.
If you are offering something on your site that people can just as easily get from another site, you have to give them a reason to choose you instead of them. The overall design and look of the site play a huge role in the process of sales.
There are different levels of expertise when it comes to web design. You have your common web designers that learned how to build a website in high school, you have your higher-level designers that went to school and learned some of the marketing techniques that most designers use…then you have your high-quality web designers that take all facets of the development spectrum and use them to create an efficient website that is visible in the search engines and converts.
A good web designer will build a nice-looking site and make it look good on the internet. A great web designer will build a functional site that makes money. Conversion rates are higher when the site is designed to perform.
The first few seconds that a visitor spends on a website will determine whether or not they will leave or stay. If they have a reason to stick around, the chances of them converting are much better.
A skilled web designer will take advantage of the area on the landing page that is above the fold, the first place people see when the page loads.
Some of the elements that contribute to engagement are:
- Attractive images
- Prompts for sales
- Specials and deals
- Clear titles and headings
- Obvious calls to action
One of the best ways to attract potential customers is to give them a deal, front and center, as soon as they land on the page. Not an overwhelming in-your-face kind of deal, but one that shows value and tact.
Collecting and Utilizing Data for Optimization
You might here the word “optimization” for a plethora of different topics. You can optimize your health, optimize your spending habits, you can optimize just about anything you like. It boils down to boiling away the parts of a routine that do not work, and adding new parts that do. As the optimization strategy matures, most of what does not work go away, and most of what does work stays.
Regardless of what you are optimizing, the facts about what is going on in the process will reveal which way to turn as the process is honed in.
When it comes to collecting data for optimizing conversion rates there are two different types of data that matter.
- Quantitative data
- Qualitative data
Quantitative data is collected by using analytical software that is embedded on the website that tracks the way users behave when they visit the site. It records the first contact on the landing page and then maps out the flow of the visit.
Some visitors will simply land on the page for a few seconds, then bounce away. Other people will either follow prompts for calls to action or navigate through a search or the main menu. In any case, the entire user journey will be recorded and available for analysis.
Qualitative data is the kind of data that software can’t figure out. One of the ways to find out what could be better on the site, what people would like to see, and what would make people want to tell their friends about the site is forms.
Customer surveys and customer forms are a great way to glean quality data from the people that visit the site and want to share their experiences. While there are methods to obtain ratings and reviews from customers, getting data from direct questions is a little more helpful.
One of the ways that many companies get their customers to fill out forms and questionnaires is to offer special offers and discounts for participation. Some companies offer prizes or inclusion for drawings…some even offer cash rewards.
When a skilled analyst uses the quantitative data and the qualitative data to map out possibilities for content on the website that might boost revenue they can forward their findings to an even more skilled web designer who will use the data to create content for both testing and effectiveness.
The End Results
The end results of a website that is built on a foundation of keyword research and market strategy are far greater than a website that was simply built to look good on the web. Content creation, web design, SEO, and conversion rate optimization should always go hand in hand when the designer goes to work. If not you end up with nothing more than an internet paperweight.