Conversion rate optimization and why it’s important for your business

Okay, let’s start with the basics.  What is a conversion rate?  A conversion rate is the percentage of website visitors who take or complete a desired action.   For example, if 100 people visited your ecommerce website and 25 of those visitors bought something then you would have a conversion rate of 25%.  Conversion rates are not only a concern for ecommerce websites but all types of websites.  Whether you are selling a product, service or getting people to subscribe to your newsletter, conversion rate optimization can help your website convert more visitors to take the action you desire.

Why increasing your conversion rate is important for your business

1. There is no such thing as a perfect website.  Whether your website looks and performs well or not there is always room for improvement.   Through A/B and multivariate testing, your company can increase revenue by ensuring your website’s content is presented to your consumers to produce maximum results.  Through time your industry and customers will change.  Testing and consistently evolving your website to keep up with these changes are vital for the success of your business.
2. Search engine marketing will continue to get increasingly competitive.  More businesses are moving their marketing dollars from traditional print advertising to online marketing/advertising.  The increase in online advertising has caused the prices of pay-per-click advertising and organic search engine optimization to increase.
3. Split testing software is affordable.  A/B and multivariate testing software allows your business to test changes to your website.  These tests will allow you to determine what changes brought in the most positive results.   Testing software like Google Website Optimizer is a powerful tool that is offered for free.  There are many other affordable tools that can be used for testing.
4. Website Analytics software is affordable.   Having a website without an analytics tool installed is like having a car with no dashboard.  Every website should have some form of analytics.  Website analytics allows you to see how your visitor interacts with your website.  There are many analytics tools to choose from, each with different features.  Google Analytics is a powerful analytics tool that is offered for free.

Improving your website’s conversion rate can save your business money.   Doubling your website’s conversion rate means that you would cut your cost per acquisition in half!  So if your business was spending $50 per new customer, now you would be spending only $25 per new customer.  This savings can be spent in areas of your marketing strategy.  You can spend more in pay-per-click advertising or begin advertising in media like TV, radio, newspaper ads, direct mail or more!