Website Optimization Factors – Conversion Tips

At the SMX West 2011 session called Conversion Optimization Science, the experts outlined what makes some of the best conversion practices that are easy to implement. First, when looking at your website, look at it one page at time. On each page, look at it each element one at a time. Then, go down a checklist.

• Look at content:
  • Every piece of content on the page needs to fall under the one of the required categories:
    • Engagement – Is the content compelling and enticing? Or is it boring and unnecessary?
    • Visitors – Is the content targeted to a specific audience? Targeted content yields higher conversion than content targeted to no one.
    • Trust – Does the content establish your credibility?
    • Buying Stage – Does the content encourage conversion without being forceful?
    • FUDs – Do you have content that dispels the readers’ fears, doubts, and uncertainties about making an online purchase?
    • Incentives – Are you communicating all unique selling points that make you different from competitors?
  • Any content that doesn’t fall under these required categories is unnecessary.

• Look at design
  • A clean layout and easy navigation immediately provides a comfortable environment for users. This is especially useful since users’ attention span is very low. Follow this framework to see if your webpage has a logical flow:
    • The top area of the page should provide the content that brands you and immediately communicates your value. It should also have the most occurrences of the users’ keywords in their search. The top area must meet the users’ expectations. Here, insert an immediate call to action.
    • The middle area is where you establish your credibility and trust factors.
    • The bottom area is for supporting details, like more details product information and secondary calls to action, like email sign ups.

• Think small – Make one small change at a time rather than making several at once. Measure the effectiveness of that one small change so you can isolate the increase/decrease on ROI and attribute it to that one change.

• Don’t ever stop – Small businesses want one panacea that would be the answer to all their ROI problems. Unfortunately, there is none. And as target markets evolve and purchasing behaviors change, conversion optimization test must never end.

Think small when trying to increase your website’s conversion rate. Think in terms of specific elements one at a time, and analyze if you are making the most of that content or design layout. Use the framework here to help divide what would otherwise be a daunting optimization task into several, more manageable buckets.

Speakers:
Scott Brinker, ion Interactive, inc.; Sandra Neihaus, Closed Loop Marketing; Khalid Saleh, Invesp. Moderator: Chris Sherman, Search Engine Land. QA Moderator: Angie Schottmuller, Interactive Artisan

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Contributed by: Nelson Toriano, Sr. e-Strategist, Milestone Internet Marketing