10 Conversion Rate Optimization Techniques That Work for Every Landing Page
Today, we’re sharing 10 simple and proven ways to increase conversion rates that “work” for absolutely any landing page.
1. Forget the Carousel
Have you ever clicked through to the end of all the slides on a website other than your own? We think the answer in most cases is no. So, should you expect this from visitors to your landing page? Statistics show that 80-90% of all clicks occur on the first slide. Obviously, there is no point in wasting your time and energy creating the rest.
Furthermore, the more choices there are, the longer the decision-making process takes. This is called choice paralysis. When various options flash before a person one after another, they generally make fewer clicks than if only one slide were available to them.
The original version of a children's furniture online store website contained a carousel consisting of a whopping 13 slides! In the modified version, the carousel was replaced by 6 static images of the most popular product categories.
As a result, the number of clicks increased by 188%, and sales by 75%.
2. Say No to Oversized Headers!
Web designers often make headers, or the top part of websites, quite voluminous by placing a rather large logo, an endless navigation bar, and a huge image within them. As a result, the truly important content of the page is pushed into the background, and people’s attention is focused exclusively on the top panel.
When landing on your page, people primarily expect to see what you are offering them: your products, services, answers to support questions, etc. A large top panel and navigation menu might look quite attractive, but for your visitors, this isn't enough. Reduce the size of your header, and success is guaranteed.
Before you are sketches of actual web pages. As a result of reducing the image in the upper part of the page, the number of clicks on the red and blue “calls to action” increased by 27.2% and 46% respectively, and on other page elements by 12.2%.
3. Encourage Visitors to Take Action
Any landing page should prompt visitors to perform various actions:
- Subscribe to a newsletter
- Request product information
- Find the nearest store
- Calculate the price of a product or service, etc.
Doing this with just one large button redirecting to a registration form, quote request, store locator, or price calculator is not the best idea.
Instead, integrate the first step of registration directly into the page. If your form consists of only one or two fields, include it in its entirety.
This way, you can better capture visitors' attention.
The initial version of this site (left) contained several buttons in the bottom right corner, including a link to a dealer search system. In the modified version, this system was placed directly in the top right corner, resulting in it being used 23 times more often.
4. Give Users Clear Directions
Perhaps one of the most basic principles of usability is that the easier something is to use, the more often it will be used.
A link should always look like a link. It must be clear to users when an element is clickable.
Links are like road signs at intersections. They should direct your visitors to their destination. Show your visitors the path and tell them what to do. Then you and your potential clients will achieve your goals much faster.
On the left is a typical product category page where the filter panel is located on the left side, and the products themselves are on the right. By clicking on the image of a particular product, the visitor goes to the page with its detailed description.
In the modified version of this page (right), a “More details” link was added to each product, emphasizing to the visitor that they can get more information on the items that interest them.
As a result of this change, the number of clicks to product pages increased by 72.3%.
5. The Selection Process Should Be Easy
On pages with similar products (e.g., TV/internet plans, tours, etc.), it is crucial to help visitors choose the option that suits them best—the solutions that best meet their needs—as quickly as possible. To do this, it is necessary to provide enough information about each item on the overview page.
The best way to find out your visitors' main decision-making criteria is to conduct user research. The better you know and understand the desires of your (potential) clients, the more sales you will have.
In the original version of the Suzuki landing page above, 3 decision-making criteria were listed for each car model: fuel consumption, CO2 emissions, and price. In the modified version, we see that, firstly, the images were enlarged, emphasis was placed on the price, and additional characteristics were added (diesel or petrol, manual or automatic transmission).
As a result of expanding the product information, the number of click-throughs increased by 7.5%.
6. Use Bulleted Lists
Usually, text on web pages is formatted as long sentences in paragraphs, which is not entirely convenient for reading.
Bulleted lists work much more effectively—they are very visual, allow for quick scanning of information, and, among other things, facilitate the process of comparing different product items.
It is worth noting an interesting fact: lists with an odd number of elements have a stronger impact than those with an even number.
Thanks to formatting the text as a bulleted list, the number of clicks increased by 78%. This change brought the company 500 additional leads during an annual car trade show.
7. Add a Persuasive Message to Every Button
Needless to say, many people experience some doubt at the very moment they are about to press a button to confirm an order or subscribe to a newsletter.
In such cases, a reminder of the benefit they will receive after taking the action helps them overcome this hesitation. Booking.com handles this perfectly:
Button on the left: “Book”. Caption below: “It's the best price”
Button on the right: “Continue”. Caption below: “Get instant confirmation”
You can also provide people with the opportunity to take another action. For example: a “Book Room Now” button and below it a link “Or add to favorites”.
As a result of adding the text “Free shipping on orders over 60 euros” under the “Add to Cart” button, the conversion rate increased by 19.4%. And the message “Instant delivery” led to an even greater increase—by 23%.
8. Repeat the Call to Action at the Very Bottom of the Page
The deeper a visitor scrolls down the page, the higher their interest. If they reach the very end, there is no doubt that they are almost 100% convinced of what you are offering them.
All you need to do at this stage is to encourage them to take action with an appropriate call to action.
For example, on the IBM website, 70% of all leads come through calls to action placed at the bottom of the page.
As a result of placing a call to action element at the bottom of the page as well, the number of clicks increased by 43.8%
9. Justify the Necessity of Your Fields
Generally, people experience doubt before providing you with personal data such as email, home address, phone number, etc. Therefore, you must explain to them why you need specific information.
Booking.com illustrates this advice perfectly. The message “Confirmation will be sent to this address” clearly tells visitors why they need to provide their email address:
As a result of adding messages to the “Street and House Number”, “Email Address”, and “Landline or Mobile Number” fields justifying the need for this data, the number of completed forms increased by 35.4%.
10. Combine All These Tips for the Best Effect
The more techniques described in this article you apply, the higher your conversion rates will ultimately be.
Before you is a screenshot of the Suzuki 4X4 landing page, which lists the main characteristics of each model.
As a result of applying 3 of the techniques described above to it (bulleted list, sufficient number of decision-making criteria, and finally, a clear link telling users what to do next), the number of click-throughs to car description pages increased by 22.1%.
Source materials: agconsult.com, image source: 鯨.w, http://lpgenerator.ru/blog/2016/10/20/10-tehnik-uvelicheniya-konversii-kotorye-podojdut-lyubomu-lendingu/#ixzz4Pb4Gm69N
