Conversion Rate Optimisation Tips & Strategies

Conversion Rate Optimisation Tips & Strategies

1) Create Additional Landing Pages

Technically, a landing page is any page that visitors can enter your website through or ‘land on’ through a search engine. However, in the context of search marketing, it refers to a page whose purpose is to get visitors to complete an objective. This objective may be to persuade visitors to buy a particular product, download a brochure, fill in a contact form, subscribe to a newsletter and so on. Whatever the objective is, it ultimately serves the same purpose and that is to generate more leads for your business. Therefore, the more landing pages you create, the more leads you’re likely to obtain.

2) Use Split Testing

Split testing refers to the practice of displaying two different versions of the same web page, for the purpose of identifying which layout yields the highest conversion rates, lowest bounce rate, most downloads etc. The results of the split test offer you a valuable insight into the best performing layout. Split testing has worked to great effect for our client, Elite RV.

3) Understand Colour Psychology

Different colours evoke specific moods and have a profound effect upon us. Colour is one of the most important considerations for all interior decorators. Whenever you walk into a shopping store, enter a bank, or visit a medical institution, the colour of your surroundings plays a vital role in determining how you feel. According to psychologists, this ability to influence our emotions also extends to our propensity to buy things, as well. When used correctly, colour has the capacity to increase your conversions.

Here’s a good article that delves into the association of colours and conversions.

4) Utilise Page Space Sensibly

If you wish to place a greater emphasis on a particular element such as a call to action, ensure that there is sufficient padding around it. If there are too many other elements surrounding the object you wish to draw attention to, they’ll distract the user and lure them elsewhere.

5) Effective Copywriting That Is Conversion Focused

An essential ingredient of conversion rate optimisation is well-written copy that persuades your visitors to act. There are a number of ways you can ensure greater engagement with your copy:

  • Know your audience – in order to write copy that compels people to take action, you first have to understand who they are and what interests them. Compile a list of buyer personas for your particular products or services. A good guide can be found
  • Use captivating headlines – if your headline doesn’t capture the user’s attention then they aren’t going to read further. We live in an age where users have access to an endless abundance of information concerning every topic imaginable. This over-abundance has had a devaluing effect, making content boring and lacklustre, not prized and precious. This makes it much harder for businesses to create copy that stands out.
  • Include facts and statistics – adding facts and stats from trusted sources adds credibility to your claims and enhances the persuasive power of your copy.
  • Make it interesting – people don’t read articles, they scan and skim through them. If you’ve passed the first test; created a good headline that has prompted the visitor to continue on, the next challenge is to maintain their attention by dividing your copy up with equally appealing sub-headings, bulleted point lists and images. When they’re scanning through your copy, these elements are what they stop to look at. If they’re suitably intrigued by any of these, they’ll consider browsing the surrounding content.

6) Create Engaging Videos

Video content is a great way to engage visitors, but as it contains both a visual and audio component, it’s imperative that the content you create is of a professional standard and doesn’t irritate prospective buyers. Here’s a few pointers for ensuring better quality video:

  • Don’t make the video play automatically – as a website visitor, you want to have complete control of your experience of the WordPress site; what you click on, what you read and what order you do things. For this reason, there’s few things more infuriating than videos that auto play. Whenever I’m browsing the web, 9 times out of 10 I’ll have my headphones on, so being jolted by the sudden sounds of a deafening promotional video really angers me – not the kind of mood you want your prospective customers to be in. Instead, always let visitors play the video at their
  • Consider adding captions – adding captions for hearing impaired viewers is really easy to implement for YouTube videos.
  • Consider the style – what would you say your target audience would be more receptive to? Video content that is based on illustrations or live footage? The style of your video content will have a large bearing on the success of your video content.

7) Use a Distinct Call-to-Action

The call-to-action (CTA) defines the primary goal of your landing page; to buy, to download, to subscribe etc, so it’s a critical component of Conversion Rate Optimisation. There are a number of ways in which you can ensure your CTA maximises your conversions:

  • Be direct and to the point – if you want your visitors to buy, tell them as such, in no uncertain terms.
  • Use words that trigger an emotional response – if you’re advertising a product, compel visitors to buy with words that emphasise and create urgency. If you are selling professional quality headphones for example, you could have something like ‘Buy the ULTIMATE in Personal Audio Now!’. The word ‘ultimate’ stresses the quality of the device, while ‘now!’ creates the urgency.
  • Include a value proposition – persuading visitors to act on what you’re offering, requires a good incentive. A value proposition summarises the benefits (value) of the product or service to prospective customers. For example, if you’re selling a pillow that’s made from special fibres that provide greater comfort, your CTA could be ‘buy now to ensure a better night’s sleep!’ Here, ‘better night’s sleep’ is the value proposition. There’s not a person out there who couldn’t do with a better night’s rest, so it’s an effective selling point.
  • Emphasise the limited availability – whether it’s a limited edition product that has only has X amount available before the stock runs out, or a special offer that ends in X amount of days, emphasising the limited availability of your offer is a great way to encourage them to take immediate action
  • The power of numbers – all powerful CTA’s include numbers in one form or another. Whether it’s to illustrate how much buyers will save (either in absolute terms or as a percentage; ie. ‘save $100’ or ‘get 25% off’) or demonstrate a condition of purchase or such; ‘items returned within 30 days receive full refund’