Since founding Conversion Sciences, Brian has helped small and medium-sized businesses turn their Web traffic into leads and sales. In this presentation, Brian discusses six ways a business owner should look at their Web site: <ol> <li>Get Upside Down</li> <li>Know your Conversion Rate</li> <li>Advertise on your own site</li> <li>Action Drives Strategy</li> <li>Conversion happens over time</li> <li>Email is your Social Network</li> </ol>

1. Conversion: The Most
Important Word for
Businesses on the Web
Conversion and Conversations
Brian Massey
Conversion Specialist
Conversion Sciences
March 2008
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2. “Markets are Conversations”
-- The Cluetrain Manifesto
http://www.cluetrain.com
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3. Your Web Site
Home
Categories
Information
This is probably your Web site.
It starts with a Home page and navigation that lets you click yo ur way down to
content.
Some sites are deeper. Some are Wider.
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4. The Pyramid design is supported by heirarchical navigation that may appeal to
very logical thinkers, but few others.
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5. Your Web Site
Home
Categories
Information
Action
Within your site, you should have some actions pages. “Contact Us” or “About
Us” is where you can send an email, call, or request information. Action pages
are usually buried within the site tree structure.
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6. When you ask the Home page to support ALL of your marketing programs,
you can have a hard time supporting all of those campaigns with one page.
Your Home page becomes daunting and unusable.
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7. Your Web Site
Home
Categories
Information
Action
One page – the home page – has to do almost all of the work of getting people
into the site. If the home page doesn’t tell a visitor what they want to hear, they
leave. We call this “bounce.”
Occassionally, the home page will score a bullseye and that visitor will
(hopefully) find their way to an action page.
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8. Your Web Site
Home
Categories
Information
Action
You can throw more money at your traffic, but your bounce rates won’t change
without some attention to conversion.
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9. Isn’t This Easier
Information
If it’s raining soup, get a bowl (not a pyramid).
An “upside-down” web site is going to catch more visitors than your
traditionally designed site.
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10. Isn’t This Easier
Blogs SEO
PR SEM
Email Campaigns,
Contests
Information
Missle Command: Now you can target your marketing strategies at pages
that do one of two things:
1. Request action
2. Direct to visitor to pages that request action
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11. Christmas Time
Blogs SEO
PR SEM
Email Campaigns,
Contests
Information
Once you get that driving visitors to action pages increases conversion, you’ll
want to create more ways for visitors to take action.
Word of warning: Don’t distract visitors who are ready by buy with ancillary
calls to action.
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12. Action Drives Strategy
What do you want your visitors to do? Be clear.
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What do you want your visitors to do?
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13. What About Home?
Blogs SEO
PR SEM
Email Campaigns,
Home Contests
Information
If your Web site is like most, 50% or more of your traffic comes from people
typing in your URL. This means that your Home Page must sell wha t’s in your
site.
In essence, your homepage needs to sell the way a magazine cover sells in a
grocery store line.
13

14. 12 Ways to Solve Your Problem
12 Ways to Solve Your Problem
You’re In the Right Place!
Save Money by Doing Something the place that you were looking for. Here is some
Save money by Doing
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You’ll want to explore our Catalog . $100
Newsletter: Never Pet a Burning Catalog
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Check out our FAQ and How-to Articles.
Blog: The Reason You Have
This Problem Special
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. 12 Ways to Solve
save money. There’s lots of stuff to read here. Your Problem
Free Report
Advertise on your own site.
Use the “left navigation” area to highlight features that may live deep inside the
site.
Use the right column to feature special offers for your visitors.
Make sure your copy isn’t “wewe” copy that talks about you. Focus your copy
on your reader. Use embedded links to take them to your action pages.
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15. New Ways of Thinking
Know Your Advertise on your
Conversion Rate Action Drives Strategy own site
Get Upside Down Conversion Email is your social
Happens Over Time network
These are some concepts you’re going to have to accept to get better at conversion.
Know Your Conversion Rate – You shouldn’t sell online unless you’re measuring. If you don’t
have analytics for your site, just get out now.
Action Drives Strategy – You have to know what ACTION you want your visitors to take
before you can select marketing strategies to make them take that action.
Get Upside Down – Don’t make your visitors drill for the information they need. Bring it to the
top. Make your homepage work for you.
Advertise on your own site – Use ad-style calls to action to get visitors to see more of your
site. Advertising what you offer helps visitors find their way.
Email is your Social Network – Your visitors may not be participating in social networks yet.
Don’t worry. You can engage them via the first social network: Email.
Conversion Happens Over Time – Your sales cycle may be long, or you may be in a
competitive market. Your Web site is a great way to keep prospects on the hook until they
become buyers.
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16. Online Resources
Customer Chaos Blog
http://www.customerchaos.com
Google Analytics
http://www.google.com/analytics
FutureNow WeWe Meter
http://www.futurenowinc.com/wewe.htm
Feedburner.com
http://www.feedburner.com
Startup Metrics for Pirates
http://www.slideshare.net/dmc500hats/startup-metrics-for-pirates-long-version
GrokDotCom Conversion Rate Blog
http://www.grokdotcom.com
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17. Questions to Ask Your Web Team
• What Analytics Package are we using?
– What’s my bounce rate?
– What’s my conversion rate?
• How are we collecting leads? How do we follow up?
• What other actions could visitors take?
• How do our visitors want to get information?
• Am I selling to myself? Do I we-we all over my visitors?
• Do we advertise on our own site?
• What do my emails say? Do they convert?
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18. Answers
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19. Other Resources
Conversion Sciences, Inc.
Brian Massey, 512-961-6604, brian@conversci.com
Ask Us About:
Conversion
Search Engine Optimization
Landing Pages
Email Marketing
Personas
Search Marketing
Content Management Systems
Social Media
Social Networks
Lead Generation
Demand Generation
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