If you are setting up a website for your business then it is likely that your main priority will be to get more sales; either through online transactions or by giving visitors enough content to encourage them to contact you. So when you are planning your website design and content, it is important to implement some essential factors that influence conversion rates.
Here are some of the essentials that you should be looking at.
Table of Contents
Performance
If your website runs really slowly and it takes more than a few seconds for a page to load then that can heavily impact the user experience. It is worth paying a bit more for a web host that provides a high standard of performance than to lose potential customers when they become frustrated with your website. If your website is already up and running, run a performance test to check whether it is time to switch hosting companies. According to Google, the majority of users expect pages to load in under two seconds. Websites that take longer than two seconds will start to see a dramatic decrease in visitors and conversions as the loading time increases.
Powerful ‘above the fold’ content
The above the fold area is the part of your website that your visitors can see without scrolling down your page. It is the first section of content that people will see so you need to ensure that it is impactful. This area essentially dictates whether someone will stay on your website, so make sure that you have enough in here to tell them what your business is all about and why they should choose your business over the others. It may also be beneficial to inline the styling for above the fold content to prevent render blocking.
Keep it simple
A lot of websites can confuse users because they have too much information or too much going on. Sometimes people are so keen to promote their services that they overload the homepage with different content and the users have no idea what they should click on or read. Having simple content that is clear and to the point will drive more sales than overloaded content, especially when using a clean, modern design.
Use videos
Videos are the most powerful type of content for driving conversions. According to HubSpot, embedding videos into landing pages can boost conversion rates by 80%. So using video content is really important and paying for a good video to be created will usually pay for itself and more. Depending on your own skills and the type of business you run, you might even be able to create your own videos.
Create lead magnets
People do not just give their email addresses out unless they are getting something in return. In order for you to capture email addresses to build an effective email marketing strategy, you need to offer visitors something that they want. This could be a useful guide that helps them with a problem that they have, or it could be a free template. This kind of content is described as a lead magnet.
Add testimonials
For website visitors to trust your business, they want to see evidence that other customers have been happy with your products or services. So add your best testimonials to your website to help convince visitors that they can trust you to provide what they require. Make sure that the testimonials are displayed prominently, rather than hidden within a page of content.
