By Tracey Dooley, MediaMinister.com

 

Here's what you'll learn in this article:

1. That 70% of your potential online customers never complete the sale;

2. That an A/B Split Test can help you increase conversions by up to 50%.

 

Here's an alarming fact: approximately 70% of people who are ready, willing and able to buy online will NOT go on to complete the sale. That means that most online businesses are only reaching about 30% of their potential.

Getting people to your website is one thing. Getting people to actually buy from your site is another thing altogether.

So how do you turn this around to your advantage? First of all, you have to make sure you're attracting the right kind of visitors in the first place. There is no point trying to sell pension policies to 17-year-olds, for example.

But let’s assume that you're getting the right kind of people to your site. These people are looking for what you are offering. Great! But how do you convince them to buy from you?

One fundamental starting point is to look at your web copywriting -– which is essentially what your website is saying to your visitors. It is about the words you use that ultimately turn your products into cash…

With a website you are completely depending on the power of your words to qualify visitors, present your sales pitch, close the sale and take the order. All without scaring off your prospect.

Seemingly, there are many factors at play. But the main one is to always write with your target audience in mind -– that is, the very people you hope will become customers.

Think about what it is they want from your product or service. How does what you have make a difference in your customers’ lives? How does it make things easier, better, richer for them? What is the true value of what you are offering? What are they really buying? (For example, a person who buys a Porsche isn't buying a car, they're actually buying youth and perceived sex appeal.)

After you've figured out what it is your target audiences has on their mind, you should paint a picture of your benefits through simple-yet-attractive words. Not words or phrases that appeal to you -- but words and phrases that appeal to your customer prospects.

Don't just talk about the features of your product or service, spell out the benefits. What you're aiming for are persuasive words that sell the solutions you offer your prospects.

OK, so let’s assume you are more than happy with your web copy and it manages to pull this off at least adequately. Still, are you certain you have removed any and all doubts and other barriers to making a purchase? Something as simple as not providing several different payment can mean the difference between a sale and no sale.

Also, look at your web analytics tools. These will tell you where your visitors leave, which pages they look at, for how long, etc.

And don't forget to test, tweak and test again. Comparing one landing page to another is called an A/B Split Test and this seemingly simple act has been known to increase conversions by up to 50% or even more.

Tracey Dooley helps entrepreneurs, authors, publishers and FTSE100/250 companies boost response rates and attract new customers. If you want to learn new and innovative ways to increase flagging conversion rates, then point your browser to: www.mediaminister.co.uk/products.htm#Webcopy

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