Make your website work harder for you
Our Top Tips for Higher Conversions Online
DATE: AUGUST 29th 2024
TIME: 5 MINUTE READ
SUBJECT: WEBSITE DESIGN
A clean design is a great start when it comes to your website, but if you really want your website to start pulling its weight, it’s time to optimize with the mindset of conversions. Afterall, your site is so much more than just a digital storefront — it’s the backbone of your brand, the place where all of your people find the information, products, and services that they’re after, and it’s the most powerful engine for driving sales when it comes to your business.
If your website isn’t optimized to guide your visitors through a seamless, intuitive experience, you risk losing their attention and a valuable lead. By missing the mark, your competitors are winning, and in an era where digital interactions far outweigh personal ones, optimizing is the critical to-do to check off your list for long-term success.
We’re diving into our top 10 simple and effective strategies to help you boost your conversions and turn casual visitors into customers. Because whether it’s mobile responsiveness, leveraging social proof, clear calls to action, or engaging storytelling, these tips are the key to unlocking your website’s full potential.
01 — CLEAR + COMPELLING CALLS TO ACTION (CTAS)
First up in our long list of things you can improve quickly are the buttons, links, banners, and general calls to action on your site. Their purpose is to guide your site visitors to the location you’d like them — ideally making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or booking a consultation for your services. Effective CTAs are usually concise, action-oriented, and definitely stand out on the page to grab attention.
Too many CTAs is just as bad as not enough (or none at all). Strategically place your CTAs so that they are a natural part of your visitor’s experience. For example, if there’s a section on your home page where you showcase your newest products, a CTA to “Shop Now” would be a natural action to take for your customer.
A good place to start is to brainstorm the top 3 things that need to be accomplished on your website (which should be a good mix of what your goals are as well as your site visitors needs). Typically these are making a purchase, booking a consultation or meeting, submitting a contact form, subscribing to an email list, etc. Keeping your main CTAs to 3 gives your audience a clear call to action without muddying the waters on how they should move forward.
Pro-tip: Never let a page end without some kind of CTA. For example, on our own website, we make sure to end each page with an invitation to sign-up for an email, check out more work, or read about what we’re about. Capitalize on the people who read top to bottom online!
02 — OPTIMIZE YOUR WEBSITE FOR MOBILE USERS
Did you know that more than half of all website traffic these days comes from mobile devices? Yet many websites still look horrible when we browse on our phones! Slow load times, hard-to-navigate menus, and non-responsive design creates endless frustration with site visitors and is the best way to absolutely tank your traffic (and your conversions and sales).
If your website isn’t mobile friendly, you’re not only alienating a massive portion of your consumers, but poor experience can drive visitors away before they’ve ever had a chance to click. Google’s algorithms are now prioritizing mobile-friendly sites, meaning that if you haven’t optimized, you're at the bottom of the search list.
Start your optimization in the simplest of ways — visit your website on your phone. Test your site on multiple devices to ensure that all of your information is stacking properly, your images are scaled correctly, text remains legible, and buttons are easy to tap. Make sure you’re also paying attention to load times — simply compressing your site images can reduce load speeds and increase your SEO performance. We love using a site like tinyPNG for all of our projects.
If what you’re seeing on your phone isn’t up to standards, then it might be time to reach out to someone for help. If you’re in charge of your website yourself, then you’ll want to look into changing the mobile breakpoint on your website so that you can customize how it looks on different devices. Website builders like Squarespace and Shopify use responsive templates that are always a great way to avoid bad mobile experiences.
Pro-tip: Use sites like AHREFs to test your SEO health on your website. Tools like this will give you specific feedback on what pages require additional attention.
03 — SIMPLIFY YOUR NAVIGATION
Simple (and intuitive) navigation is high on the list of visitor expectations online. A cluttered menu or confusing layout can overwhelm your users, making it difficult for them to find the information they need to feel confident about making a purchase or taking the next step. Complex menus or too many options lead to decision paralysis in users, causing most people to abandon a website out of frustration — we’ve all been there.
When users can instead easily find what they’re looking for, they’re more likely to stay engaged, hangout, and find exactly what they need. They’ll take the time to explore offerings, browse collections, and ultimately convert.
You can streamline your menus by only focusing on the most important pages in the main options. If you have a complicated site structure, definitely consider nestling your options into easy-to-read drop down categories. Consider also implementing a “sticky” navigation, where the menu always stays visible no matter how far down the page someone scrolls. This ensures that no matter where someone is on your website they can always easily move between pages and never feel stuck.
04 — LEVERAGE SOCIAL PROOF
A site lacking social proof often struggles with building trust with first-time visitors. People are more likely to trust a brand that others vouch for, especially in the form of testimonials, reviews, video, or even something as simple as client logos.
Consider highlighting testimonials on some of the key pages of your site, like your homepage, product pages, and landing pages selling specific services. If it resonates with your audience, you should also include any relevant industry awards, certifications, or case studies showing your expertise and thought process.
For those with e-commerce websites, featuring customer’s reviews with detailed feedback, imagery, and ratings is particularly impactful. We always love a good User Generated Content strategy where brands can leverage their real customers to provide them with the content they need to really show off how trustworthy and relevant they are.
05 — USE POPUPS STRATEGICALLY (AKA HANDS OFF THE REGULARS!!)
Let’s be real: nobody likes a pop-up. They’re overused, hardly ever function they way they need to, and can be annoying if not done properly. But not using them means missing out on loads of leads who are interested in what you have to offer but might be undecided. Without a little nudge, most visitors will leave a website without taking any action at all, and pop-ups are a great way to capture someone right before they jet off the page.
The key? “Exit-Intent” Popups.
Exit-intent pop ups appear when someone moves a cursor towards the browser's close tab or window, signaling that they might leave the site. These windows typically offer a final opportunity to engage, usually offering a discount, free resource, or reminder to complete something before exiting. It’s a last-ditch effort to recoup some information so that you can continue the customer service experience in their inbox or via text.
Optimizing your website for conversions isn’t about adding more bells and whistles — it’s about creating a seamless, intuitive experience that guides users toward taking the actions that matter most to your business. From ensuring your CTAs are clear and compelling to optimizing for mobile users, each of these steps plays a crucial role in turning visitors into loyal customers. By focusing on these ten key areas, you can make your website work harder for you, driving higher conversions and ultimately, greater success for your brand.
Remember, the digital landscape is always evolving, and so should your website. Regularly review and update these elements to keep your site performing at its best. If you need help implementing any of these strategies or want to take your website to the next level, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Maker + Made. We’re here to help you create a website that not only looks great but also delivers real results.
