Publication number: ELQ-89347-1
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How to Ensure That Your Website Is Winning For You
8 Ways To Ensure That Your Website Is Winning For You
Introduction
It’s hard to be successful in any business when your customers can’t find you, or they find you and still can’t figure out whether your solution works for them. Thus I was surprised to see in a recent CNBC survey that 45 percent of small businesses still don’t have a website. These are missing a major opportunity to be found instantly via the Internet, locally and around the world.
Even more disappointing are other statistics that show most websites that do exist have a very low “conversion rate,” or ratio of visitors to the site versus ones who meet your goal of buying a product or signing up for a newsletter. In fact, very few website owners even track their website activity, or use Search Engine (SEO) or Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) tools now available.
Highlighting the problem, and the solution, I just found a new book, “Making Websites Win,” by Dr. Karl Blanks and Ben Jesson. Their insights are based on their experience optimizing websites for hundreds of clients in 34 countries, and they provide many practical tips on how to easily double your own website conversion rate or more, including the following:
- Step n°1 |
Content must be written well, user-friendly, and credible
Usability problems kill conversions. By far the most effective technique for improving your writing is simply carrying out user readability tests on every piece of content, and really listening to feedback. Keep sentences short. For credibility, support facts with hard data and links.
- Step n°2 |
Tell people what you do, and make the benefits clear.
Believe it or not, one of the biggest problems with many websites is that people can’t figure out quickly and easily what you really offer. Use plain language (no acronyms) on the first page and every page, to emphasize customer benefits, as well as product features. Skip the hyperbole
