So, you have put in the time, done the research and completed the perfect optimization plan for your website. You have been noticing a steady rise of your site on the major search engine result pages and are even receiving an increased flow of visitors to your website; but you are not making that much more money! What’s up? Simply put, you are not converting as many customers as you should be, and it’s time for a new kind of optimization: conversion optimization.
Here’s the dirty little secret few will tell you when you launch or redesign a website … on day 1, your site will not work in the way you had originally intended. That’s right, you are wrong from the start. The reason for this is actually quite simple – everyone’s business is different, even if you are selling the exact same product(s). In addition, there is no way of predicting or insuring how website visitors will interact before the website is actually launched. To effectively deal with this you need Conversion Optimization, which we at Optimum7 actually include in our definition for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). It is not enough to get the rankings; if those visitors aren’t converting you don’t get to go to the bank.
Conversion Optimization is all about Analytics and the stats generated. Many have heard of, or are familiar with Google Analytics which is a terrific tool. There are many more tools, some with even more sophistication and application. Analytics provides the Internet Marketing Professional the information needed to understand the actual user interaction with every element of every page. The combination of variables is amazing towards pinpointing what the visitor liked and disliked; what they engaged with and what they bolted from. You can even track the keyword for every click along the way, visitor by visitor. Ultimately, adjustments, modifications can be made to web pages based on this information. It’s an endless ongoing feedback loop providing the expert online marketer with the ability to continually improve the appeal, the interaction and ultimately the sales and profitability of the website.
A/B or split testing is a fundamental tool of conversion optimization. Data gathered may not be conclusive as to exactly what change or modification will work best. This tool eliminates the guesswork so that you can test both versions (more versions too) to determine which one performs the best.
Why does Conversion Optimization work? … Because there is ultimately no guesswork. The data is real and it is based on real human interaction. The data tells you what you need to do. All you have to do is … Do It!
Is your website converting the way you want it to? Do you want to improve your sales and profits? Contact us for a no-obligation initial consultation.
April 18, 2010
