Barney Grossman, Conversions Executive at Host Europe Group offers his expert advice in to what stop customers buying from your website and how to understand more about your visitors and how to convert their visits into sales.
- Degree in Marketing
- Placement
- Still working 3 years on (MVT, UX, UI, Online Psychology)
- Who has a website
- Who sells products on their website?
- What do you think is stopping your existing visitors from buying?
- What stops you from buying from other peoples websites?
- Discipline called User Experience
What is user exerpience
Over all goal is to make things simpler for the visitor
Whenever you are considering to create/add/change something, try to do it in the simplest way possible. Making tasks easy for our visitors is the key to success.
K.I.S.S… Keep It Simple, Stupid!
Guy on the left vs stages on the right
Website objective (make money selling specific products)
Page Goal (product page = sell the product)
Page Objective --> Sub-objectives:
*Encourage visitor to click purchase
*Get visitor to sign up free trial
*provide info on product
Why is this important? Priority
Is lings here?
Clutter =
Confusing =
task harder for visit to understand and digest =
less likely to complete goal
How do you know when too much?
Whats the point?
If you can’t pass the squint test...
Feature --> Benefit
Minty fresh toothpaste --> Sexy kissable teeth
My record collection --> Best day of their life
We work and understand our business/products -> visitors often don’t
Speak in benefits, talk in the eye of the recipient
Treat customers as if they don’t understand anything about our products
Savvy customers skip marketing to specifications
Visitors who are new to your product will read all.
if they are presented with over whelming details they will possibly skip
Consumer buying cycle:
*Search solution --> I need a website
*Search product --> I need hosting
*Search provider
Make everything easier
Easier to navigate
Find what they are looking, quicker
Understand a page and proceed to next action with little cognitive thought
Call to action = getting visitor to do what we want (buy, give email address, read more, view product, contact)
Will be main KPI for page objectives & goals
Too many dilutes
Control prominences = don’t want a more info button same as buy now as reduced chances of being clicked
*Size --> Bigger is better
*Colour --> Green = Go, Red = stop
*Wording --> hard sell (Buy Now) vs soft sell (continue) or directional (Pay Now)
*Spacing --> More white space = easier to see
Don’t divert a visitor when they are on a goal
No distractions on payment pages (remove most of the links)
Salesmen have all the answers. They’ve heard all the objections before...
Potential Customer:
“Hmm I can’t afford that right now”Salesman:
“Well madam, we can spread the payment out over a couple of months”
Problem with website visitors = can’t hear their objections.
Your website is a salesperson.
Needs to pre-empt and provide information --> overcome as many objections as you can come up with.
These could be addressed directly in the product or service description or you could create a Frequently Asked Questions section.
Similar to objections...
visitos may be willing to buy but just short key info to seal
*How long will it take to receive?
*Will it work with my XYZ?
*Can I fit it myself or will I have to get a professional in?
include info that’s obvious to you --> FAQ sections.
You work with your product regularly but your potential customer are not you!
Make sure your contact information has its own page
Also in headers/footers
Online goals --> offline
Traditional media & new social media
As well as contact info:
*Awards/Endorsements
* Supplier Brands
* Clients
* Common Icons
After sale, ask for review
*Most, happy to give glowing ones
*those that don’t will give constructive
Good to website as potential customers lsee they’re not the first t& people are happy to recommend you.
trustpilot and reviewcentre offer extension
You think sites flawless, but ur not visitor
ask family and friends:
“I’m going to show you my website, and I want you to say out loud what goes through your head as you look at the page. I won’t be offended; I need to improve it as much as possible so say whatever comes to mind”.You will be AMAZED at how often people will pick up on things you’d never even consider.*It looks a bit odd that most of the things at the top are questions and a few are statements
*IWhat is it you’re trying to sell?
*I’m sorry but that colour’s hideous!
*Where’s the buy button?
[SLIDE]No matter how much time you spend in the planning and design phase of your website you’ll never catch everything.
On the flipside everyone will have their own opinions and you don’t have to agree with them!