Conversion
Conversion Rate Optimization or Conversion is the process of analyzing website data in order to improve financial and site usage results; in many ways, it relates to the potential of your website, and in some respects, the potential of your business. With rising social media usage, the number of page views can often increase, but consumers also have a short attention span. To stand out from your competition, you have to differentiate what you are offering. This is exactly what Kiss did by changing their appearance in 1973. If something gains you the right attention that you need, go for it! What will make you stand out?
One will often see results from conversion efforts before search engine rankings within Google's top pages. In the long-run, it is well worth long-term investment and is a way to improve social media results as well. When tracking conversions (or sales results), we cannot always predict how people will react when making a purchase decision. Like a doctor, we must make a diagnosis, hypothesize what is going on and test. Put yourself in your customer's shoes. Attention to detail in business -- and what takes place on a website -- is important. You can gain traffic from social media, but you also want to achieve planned sales.
There are four important things to consider when one does business online: 1) how information is presented and organized, 2) usability, 3) flow from navigation to call-to-action and 4) user experience. Optimization is not about optimizing web pages. It is about optimizing decisions related to a customer's journey through your sales funnel. SEO can help, but it isn't always what will determine your success online. Keep in mind that sometimes people only pay attention to what is above "the fold," rather than scrolling all the way down. Give your readers a reason to scroll down and click a call-to-action button.
When it comes to making purchases, customers want to be comfortable with their decision and this also includes the security of the transaction (hence https over http). This assurance may increase your sales by 10-15%. Relevancy is important, as well as clarity. Make the flow from product/service intro to call-to-action free of any hindrances; make sure your use of color along the way is appropriate for your target audience. Keep in mind that some people are color blind and cannot see all that you see; usability and accessibility are important. Some individuals can only read the text that is on a site (Alternate text is important.)
No matter what the quality of your product/service is, you won't capture a significant part of the market unless your buyers are persuaded to take the desired action. To persuade them you need to know what they are into and what they need. For example, one of my strongest interests is in music (cooking follows a close 2nd). Purchasing a hollowbody Gretsch guitar was based on an interest in George Harrison. Get to know your customers personally and speak with them. Communicators who understand their target market the best achieve the most! Let's talk about your conversion rates and how they can be improved.
