Less than 22% of online businesses consider themselves satisfied with their website conversion rate. But why is this such an important metric for a business?
When we compare the conversion rate value of two businesses in the same niche, we can determine which brand people prefer to choose. In short, it actually measures the success of a business.
🤔 We often hear discussions about the conversion rate, but what exactly constitutes a good value, and what factors influence its value?
We’ll discuss this in today’s article. But before we get there and see the impact of each factor individually, let’s first understand what the conversion rate means exactly.
What is the conversion rate?
Conversion is when a person arrives on a website from a marketing message and completes the desired action:
- Purchases a specific product or service
- Subscribes to an email list
- Registers for an event, etc.
As a definition, the conversion rate represents the percentage of your website visitors who have achieved the desired objective out of the total number of visitors.
It can be calculated as follows: divide the number of conversions by the total number of visitors and multiply by 100.
For example, if your website has 1000 visitors but only 20 make a purchase or respond to a CTA, the conversion rate is calculated as 20 divided by 1000, multiplied by 100. That’s 2%.
How do you determine if you have a good conversion rate?
A good conversion rate is between 2% and 5%. It’s important to know that any change in the conversion rate, even by 0.5%, will significantly impact sales.
Conversion rates by industry:
Ecommerce: 1.84% – 6.25%
Legal: 1.07% – 6.46%
B2B: 2.23% – 11.70%
Finance: 5.01% – 24.48%
As you can see, conversion rates in eCommerce are relatively low, especially compared to finance. Similarly, B2B website conversion rates tend to be higher.
According to a 2020 report by Adoric, the industry average for eCommerce is 3%. However, some industries may have higher or lower conversion rates depending on competition and demand.
Conversion rates by industry:
Consumer Electronics: 1.4%
DIY and Tools: 1.7%
Auto: 2.2%
Home & Decor: 2.3%
Major Chains: 2.3%
Jewelry and Cosmetics: 2.9%
Sports: 3.1%
Other: 3.4%
Clothing and Footwear: 4.2%
Health and Pharmacy: 4.6%
Gifts: 4.9%
What is NOT the conversion rate?
Most of the time, we tend to think that the conversion rate is all about promotion. We blame ads, platforms, agencies, or other factors for a low conversion rate. However, more often than not, the issues lie elsewhere.
The conversion rate should be at a reasonable level before you start promoting. If there are no conversions and you want to promote your business, the chances of achieving the desired results are very low.
Why? Because if you can’t organically sell a product or service, it means there are certain factors that are reducing conversions. These issues should be addressed before starting paid promotion.
15 factors that influence the conversion rate of your online store
Depending on the number of conversions, we can determine if we need to improve certain aspects of messaging, the website, or positioning. And not just that.
In today’s article, we discuss the 15 factors that influence the conversion rate. Additionally, for each factor, you will receive some suggestions that you can apply to improve the conversion rate.
1. UI/UX Design
Ninety-four percent of people say they leave a website that’s difficult to navigate within seconds.
When you enter a site that’s hard to read or visually unappealing, people leave immediately before even finding out what it’s about.
That’s why the design aspect should not be ignored.
What can you do to improve website design and increase the conversion rate?
- Include easily noticeable CTA (Call to Action) buttons.
2. Use negative space effectively
3. Add visually appealing elements
By following a few tips, the website becomes easily accessible to potential customers. With all the information they desire presented in a visually pleasing manner, there’s a good chance they will return to your site and make purchases of your products or services.
2. Website Loading Time
Loading time is the first obstacle between your online store and users. It’s recommended that the page loading time should not exceed 2-3 seconds.
However, in reality, users tend to hit the “back” button sooner because they assume there’s an issue with the browser or the page isn’t available. So, a short loading time is vital to attract and retain customers on the site.
How can you improve website loading time?
- Eliminate unnecessary plugins and update essential ones.
- Ensure images are lightweight (maximum 100 KB), and use formats like JPEG or WEBP. Use PNG sparingly, only where absolutely necessary.
- Choose a website speed optimization plugin.
3. Mobile Optimization
Seventy-nine percent of smartphone owners have made an online purchase using their mobile devices in the last six months.
Despite people increasingly using their smartphones for online shopping, many online businesses still design their websites primarily for desktop use.
Having a desktop-designed website on a mobile phone forces users to constantly zoom in and out and rotate their screens to click on items. This can be discouraging for users, leading them to leave the site.
Furthermore, without optimizing your website for mobile devices, Google may rank you lower in search results, reducing your conversion rate.
How do you optimize the website for mobile devices?
- Test your website using Google’s mobile-friendly testing tool. This helps you focus on specific areas of your site that need adjustments for mobile compatibility.
- Choose appropriate themes and plugins that you can optimize for mobile use.
- Adjust pop-ups for mobile devices.
4. Meet People’s Expectations
People click on your website because they’ve read the meta description and have been promised that they’ll find the information they’re looking for.
Obviously, if they enter your landing page and find irrelevant images or information, they will exit immediately and be disappointed. That’s why it’s important to deliver what you promised to people without creating false expectations.
How can you do that?
- Avoid clickbait messages to lure people into your site. If you do use a very promising message, make sure to deliver on it.
- If you’re using Facebook and Google Ads, ensure that the landing page matches the promotion message. Do not redirect them to another page or the homepage.
- Make sure that the product/service description includes everything the consumer needs to know.
5. Type of Content and Brand Voice
For nearly all types of marketing, content strategy plays an essential role in building a relationship with the audience.
However, to create an effective strategy, you must identify and understand your target audience before taking any other action.
For example, if you sell sports clothing and equipment, your audience likely wants to learn more about sports, health, and how to use the accessories correctly.
If you sell books, your audience probably wants to read, discover new books, and see reviews.
Also, depending on the audience, you can adapt how you communicate with them: more friendly and playful or more formal.
How do you improve the type of content to increase the conversion rate?
- Conduct brief research to find out who your audience is and create customer avatars.
- You can send short surveys to your existing customer base to see what they want to learn from you.
- Ensure you are consistently present on online channels and communicate with your audience.
6. Copywriting
Another crucial factor for the conversion rate is copywriting. Without presenting what you sell in an attractive way and without considering the benefits that persuade a person to make a purchase, it’s very difficult to convince someone to become a customer.
Therefore, even though promotional texts may seem suitable at first glance, it’s possible that the audience may not resonate with that approach.
How can you improve copywriting?
- Test multiple versions of texts, headlines, and promotional angles. Eventually, you’ll find the winning approach.
- Write for a customer avatar, not for everyone.
- Convey emotions through benefits and show your avatar how their life will change after using your product/service.
- If you want to learn more about common copywriting mistakes made by businesses, read the article “7 Common Copywriting Mistakes of Online Stores (+ 7 Solutions).”
7. The Presence of Appropriate CTAs (Call to Actions)
Including calls to action on your website can directly influence the conversion rate and revenue because it encourages users to take a specific action.
A CTA can take various forms: a button, a link, or a signup form.
Generally, CTAs are used to ask people to take action. This request can be made directly, such as “buy now,” or indirectly, like “please send us more information.”
How can you use CTAs to improve the conversion rate?
- Ensure that the CTA is always visible (even when visitors scroll down).
- Use a clear and direct CTA. Avoid metaphors or things that can confuse people.
- From a design perspective, choose colors that stand out, even if they are different from your brand’s colors.
8. Social Proof and the Presence of Reviews
Recent studies have shown that approximately 93% of consumers check online reviews before making a purchase, and 90% say they decided to buy due to positive reviews.
Adding social proof to your website will help you build authority in the field and positively influence the conversion rate, especially if customers are satisfied with your products/services.
How can you add social proof elements to your website?
- After each order placed on the site, send an email with a feedback form to the customer to see how satisfied they are with their interaction with your brand.
- Use customer reviews as paid promotion materials.
- Add customer photos so that website visitors can see the product/service in action.
9. Building Audience Trust in Your Brand
Considering that there are now many fraudulent businesses that don’t deliver products or take a long time to arrive, people have become increasingly skeptical. They need reassurance before ordering from you.
Before deciding to buy, you need to earn their trust. Without this, you can’t convert a visitor into a customer.
How can you increase trust in your brand?
- Create relevant content.
- Post regularly on social media.
- Show that you are an authority in the field.
- Interact with your customers.
- Include a money-back guarantee and how to benefit from it.
10. Personalization Elements
Personalization shows that you understand your customers’ needs, preferences, and interests. You take these into account when creating an offer or promoting a product/service.
This way, potential customers can quickly find what they need from your business without much effort.
Let’s take an example. Let’s say someone needs an ergonomic office chair. Imagine how difficult it would be for that person if they had to browse through 50 pages of content to figure out which chair suits them.
They would likely stop searching and go elsewhere. In such a situation, there is a high chance that the customer will never return to that website. And the total number of visits will decrease significantly in the long run.
Instead, as a business, you could make the experience much more enjoyable for the user, making it easier for them to find what they need.
What personalization elements improve the conversion rate?
- Provide filtering options based on multiple conditions chosen by potential customers.
- Create personalized offers tailored to your customer avatars.
- If you use email marketing, make sure to personalize the content, offering relevant promotions based on the interests of the person who subscribed to your list.
11. Customer Support Services
Not only does customer support affect the conversion rate, but it also impacts the entire customer experience with your brand. That’s why we discussed this factor in detail in the article “8 Ways to Provide Customer Service in Your eCommerce Business.”
When a potential customer encounters a problem and has no one to turn to, they will leave the website and buy elsewhere. Therefore, customer support should be easily accessible, available through various channels, and unconditional.
How can customer support services improve the conversion rate?
- Offer multiple options to obtain customer support: chatbot, phone call, contact form, etc.
- Track essential KPIs to optimize the process.
- Create a section with the most frequently asked questions, allowing customers to help themselves. Some people prefer to find solutions on their own, so it’s good to provide this option.
12. SEO
If you want to increase visibility and organic traffic to your site, SEO optimizations help attract visitors for free.
Once you implement an SEO strategy, you will see that the conversion rate will also increase because people who are already interested in your products/services visit your site.
How can you implement an SEO strategy for your website?
- Use relevant keywords for your audience. You can create a spreadsheet with the most suitable keywords and optimize the text on your website based on them.
- Add relevant meta descriptions for each page.
- Obtain backlinks from trusted, authoritative URLs.
- Learn more about SEO optimizations you can do for your online store in the article “5 Actions That Will Increase Your Traffic and Sales.”
13. A/B Testing
It’s challenging to know right away what content and approaches work for your customers and what doesn’t. That’s why it helps to run appropriate A/B tests to see which headline, colors, or CTAs attract your customer avatar.
And in Google Analytics, you can observe how people behave on your site. By analyzing the conversion rate and user behavior, you can determine which approach works best for your audience.
“How to Run an A/B Test? Create a minimum of 2 page variants, with different texts and designs. It’s preferable to test the texts and design sequentially, not both at the same time. This way, you’ll figure out if the main issue was with the message or the visual aspect. Promote both page variants equally. Depending on the winning variant, use the same approach across all communication channels where your business is present.
14. Improving the Acquisition Process
The acquisition process, both on mobile devices and desktops, should be simple. The person is already decided to buy your product and is waiting with the card in hand to make the purchase.
However, if the process is too complicated, the conversion rate will suffer.
What can you do to optimize the acquisition process? Include only essential elements in the checkout process. Add only necessary fields. Add more payment options so that the customer can choose the best option for them. The checkout page should be simple, devoid of distractions. Also, include the products the person is ordering so they don’t forget what they’ll receive from you.
15. Build a CRO Planner A CRO planner (Conversion Rate Optimization plan) is a digital marketing strategy that businesses develop to improve their website’s conversion rate.
This allows them to analyze the figures from the business and develop strategies to increase the conversion rate over time.
How do you build a CRO planner? Define the objectives you want the website to achieve in terms of relevant KPIs and metrics. Observe the current results to know the starting point. Define the actions needed to improve the existing numbers. Prioritize the actions. Create the conversion rate optimization strategy and test to see what works best.
Conclusions: How to Improve Your Online Store’s Conversion Rate? If you want to promote your business online, then you should address these factors. Over time, you will see that the conversion rate will increase.
Without the 15 factors above, the results will not be satisfactory. And we’ll continue to blame ads or promotion when, in fact, there are other aspects causing poor conversions.
To make it easier for you, below is a brief recap of what you need to do to optimize your business’s conversion rate:
Use an appealing design for your online store. This way, people will spend more time on the site and eventually decide to make a purchase. Reduce the website’s loading time. It’s preferable for it to be less than 2-3 seconds. Ensure your online store is mobile-friendly. Don’t create false expectations. Try to deliver what you promise, or else people will be disappointed after interacting with your brand. Provide relevant content for the target audience. Create persuasive messages on the website and for promotion that resonate with your customer avatar. Add appropriate CTAs and ensure they are straightforward and stand out. Add social proof elements and reviews. Gain people’s trust before selling to them. Add filters to help people search for the desired product and create personalized offers. Provide exemplary customer service. Implement an SEO strategy to increase traffic to the site. Use A/B testing to find the text and design variants that attract your target audience. Simplify the checkout process. Create a conversion rate optimization plan to implement in your business.
Need help optimizing your online store’s conversion rate? We have a GIFT for you: a free audit to discover what’s not working in your strategy and how you can achieve your business objectives.
Click on the following link and fill out the form to request a free audit: https://darmedia.biz/free-audit/
