Four tips to increase website sales
Your website is your online storefront. It isn’t just there so people can ‘find’ you online – it has a primary purpose is to make money for your business!
Here are four tips to increase your website sales.
1. Channel visitors into your sales process
Your website homepage must have calls-to-action that take the visitor into your sales process.
Your sales process will vary by industry but here are some common ones that work well: ‘Buy now!’, ‘Free Quote!’, ‘Call Us!’, ‘Subscribe to our Free Newsletter’, ’Book Your Free Session’ and ‘Request a Call-Back!’
Regardless of which action you want your visitor to take, you need to have it prominently displayed.
Position a call-to-action ‘above the fold’ on your homepage – before the visitor has to scroll down. Then repeat it – repeat it again – repeat it on all your main pages – you get the picture!
A full 90% of small-business websites aren’t taking advantage of using calls-to-action.
When we’re online, we don’t use much of our brainpower. Visitors need obvious and repeated guidance to do what you want them to do.
Make it very clear to them to ‘take the next step’ with repeated calls-to-action.
2. Revamp regularly
Many of my clients refuse to work from anything but the finest office or shop. They know perceptions matter and so they keep their physical storefronts clean and modern.
Your website should be no different – it is your online storefront. And with the pace of online change your website needs ‘renovations’ every two years or it will begin to look old, tired, and past its best years.
Your website is your online storefront and it needs ‘renovations’ every two years or it will begin to look old, tired, and past its best years.
A simple theme change can make a world of difference, bringing a modern look and feel to your website.
The web is moving towards ‘less is more’ – less text, large fonts, no flashing animations and clean, simple layouts. Videos, graphics and bullet points are doing the talking rather than lengthy paragraphs.
3. Be human
Many small-business owners make the mistake of hiding behind their website. Business owners who fail to put themselves ‘out there’ online are leaving money on the table.
People like to buy from real people – the further you remove the human element from your website, the more difficult it will be to convert your prospects into buyers.
Your website should channel visitors to taking that next step and engage directly with your company.
So encourage human interaction in the next step in your sales process. Pop-up applications like vCita and LiveHelpNow allow your clients to book consultation appointments and engage in live chat while on your website.
You can have large call-to-action banners for visitors to join you at your next seminar, workshop, webinar or Google Hangout.
Nothing will increase your sales conversions like human interaction. The easier it is for visitors to initiate human engagement with your business, the more profitable your website will be.
4. Re-target your visitors
Most visitors who see your website will never return. They may be interested, but will not be ready to buy in that moment. Unfortunately, most will have forgotten about your business by the time they are ready to buy.
But what if you could stay in touch with these visitors and continue to give them your message?
Google and Facebook enable you to re-target your website visitors for the next 180 days. You can run tailored ads to only these people.
Retargeting campaigns enables your business to become ‘omni-present’ in the minds of your visitors.
We typically need to see an offer three to five times before we purchase it – that’s why television commercials run for months on end.
Repetition breeds familiarity. When you run re-targeting campaigns to your prospects, it is your business they will think of when they are ready to buy.
Re-targeting campaigns can be our most profitable form of advertising. They are easy to create but are highly under-utilised by most small-business owners.
Reach your goal
By implementing these four tips you will help your website reach its main goal: making sales for your business!
Campbell McPherson, CMcP
