9 Expert Tips To Achieve Maximum Funnel Conversion
Over my 20 years in marketing, I have witnessed time and time again business owners, just like you, work endless hours burning the midnight oil to achieve maximum funnel conversion. If you’ve been in business for any amount of time, then you already know it’s difficult to convert your ICA the first time they come across your site. And it’s even more difficult to get them to come back and buy from you.
Since the customer journey has changed many times since online marketing began to be the future of sales, conversions no longer depend on good copywriting and pretty graphics. Customers want an experience to get to know you and how you can guide them to be the hero of their own story and provide the solution to their problem. If you can solve this – you will have maximum conversions.
How is conversion related to ROI? Conversion is a key driver of ROI. A mere increase in conversion rate of, say, 1% equates to one new customer per 100 visitors. So what happens when the “perfect funnel” falls flat? Your ROI goes down as well as a slew of other analytics. So let’s take a look at these 9 tips to improve your funnel conversion and increase your ROI!
Tip Number One
The Landing Page
Let’s talk about your landing page. You’ve created an offer that will make their lives better. But how do you get them to convert at the very bottom of the funnel? The landing page. A landing page is just one of the most important marketing tools and is often the first page where potential customers will interact with your business. To build an effective marketing funnel, you need to find out how to attract visitors to your page and then join your ecosystem.
A lead magnet, or freebie, is often given away in exchange for contact information (e.g., an email address). But the content of the lead magnet should match the topic of the page that the user came to for. So if someone came to your blog for money-saving tips and instead received information on how to write a novel, they will not be happy and will hit unsubscribe or scroll away.
Tip Number Two
Optimize META Data and SERPs
The conversion funnel often starts with a search on Google. Optimizing your presence on SERPs (search engine results page) by writing helpful, strategic meta descriptions for your pages. In addition, taking advantage of Google’s maximum meta description length will help you show up higher in the search engine rankings. It is recommended to keep your headline at 60 characters or fewer to fit Google results with a 600-pixel word limit and avoid being truncated.
If you want to rank on the first page of Google, give them what they’re asking for. Google’s placement of your site in search engine results is important, and this is where people will find you.
Pro Tip: Create a conversion-focused content piece that includes videos from your website and YouTube channel. This is often all it takes to rank on Google’s first page, check out my insights on building the right toolkit for the job, complete with some suggestions for podcasting and video creation solutions!
Tip Number Three
Relationship Management
Customer relationship management (CRM) is all about building solid relationships with customers by providing positive experiences at every touchpoint. The more customer-centric your company is, the more successful it will be. It’s not just about winning new customers because if you provide extraordinary customer experiences, customers will stick around, be loyal to you, and refer their friends to your company.
Make sure you have a solid CRM strategy in place that involves mapping out customer touchpoints and using the data from those touchpoints to segment customers, deliver personalized onboarding, and implement predictive analytics. More than ever before, customer behavior is changing, people now access information in real-time, and the Internet has made it much easier to research and switch suppliers.
Tip Number Four
Cart Abandonment
Abandonment of the shopping cart is a heavy reality in this day and age. With some startling statistics, I’d like to show you how big of an issue it is.
- Across all industries, the cart abandonment rate is close to 70%
- Nearly 86% of mobile users abandon their carts
- Extra costs are the most common reason for cart abandonment, followed by forcing customers to create an account
Most cart abandonment occurs at the checkout page. Common tips for optimizing your checkout process involve:
- Making your customer feel a sense of urgency.
- Simplifying the transaction process.
- Including multiple payment options.
TIP: For mobile users, make sure the checkout process is as easy as possible and easy to navigate.
Tip Number Five
A/B Split Testing
Split testing is a method of getting the most out of your website. With an A/B test, two versions of a variable are shown to different segments, and the winner is determined by which one leaves the maximum impression on metrics such as business impact. A/B testing is the gold standard for optimizing your website, and it removes all the guesswork, enabling experienced optimizers to make data-backed decisions. When A is the original testing variable, B is the variation, and the one that moves your business metrics in the positive direction is deemed the winner. Testing winning variations on your page or element of choice can help optimize your site and increase your return on investment.
If you’re looking for a way to determine which version of a webpage is better, A/B testing is the answer. A/B testing is a purely data-driven process with little room for your thoughts or instincts. You can quickly determine a “winner” and a “loser” by looking at improvements in metrics such as time spent on the page, demo requests, abandonment rates, and click-through rates.
Tip Number Six
Upsells and Downsells
One way to increase your bottom line is with upsells and downsells. By showcasing these to your customers, you’ll be able to make more cash right away. This is a huge help for companies looking to maximize profits!
Customers are just people, and they have their own wants and needs that can sometimes be complicated to address. Some customers need to be upsold upsell products that they might not have considered, while others might downsells to lower-priced options if they feel strapped for cash. For example, you’ve got product A. So far, so good, but what if someone might need product B in the future? It’s so easy to upsell them now rather than later. And downsells work by taking advantage of discounts or lower offers.
Tip Number Seven
Live or Chat Bots
Shaw once said, “The biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” This could not be more true today, especially after the pandemic. Consumers are increasingly seeking connections and communication. The popularity of live chat comes from its efficiency, quick response, and multitasking abilities. In fact, 90% of consumers are happy to use live chat vs. email or phone. We live in a day and age of instant gratification and digital communication. When was the last time you answered a text vs. a phone call?
Exactly. With live chat ranking at 73% of customer satisfaction rates, this is a win-win to build a likable and service-oriented brand AND boost conversions. In the age of digital communication, why not prioritize a personalized way to talk to your customers? Live chat software is the perfect way to convert more visitors into customers. It is a lot like a face-to-face interaction in that it is incredibly engaging.
Tip Number Eight
Remarketing + Retargeting
Remarketing ads can keep your brand from losing sight of bounced traffic as it leaves your website. This is done by showing your ads to those who have left your shopping cart or site but have not made a purchase. With success rates of only about 2% for first-time visitors, remarketing is the only way to reach 98% of people.
Now, there is something I want to point out. Remarketing and retargeting are often confused with each other, and one is focused on reaching new prospects, and the other re-sparking interest in your company to old customers. These strategies are great and should be used to optimize your funnels.
Tip Number Nine
Testimonials + Social Proof
Many marketers are overlooking this powerful marketing tool. The testimonials section is often overlooked because it’s not strictly the “sell” to potential customers. However, this should be one of the primary tools in any marketing strategy. Putting up user-generated content lets customers know they are not alone and that others feel similarly to them. This also gives social proof and gives validity to your product or service.
Social proof has gained popularity over the last few years. It gives consumers confidence in your offer and products when they see other people’s feedback when shopping online with you and how many people have already purchased. With tools like Provely and FOMO, social proof couldn’t be more straightforward.
So What Did We Learn?
- The Landing Page: To build an effective marketing funnel, you need to find out how to attract visitors to your page and then join your ecosystem.
- Optimize META Data and SERPs: Optimizing your presence on SERPs (search engine results page) by writing helpful, strategic meta descriptions for your pages.
- Relationship Management: The more customer-centric your company is, the more successful it will be.
- Cart Abandonment: The cart abandonment rate is close to 70% and 86% on mobile across all industries. Creating an abandonment strategy will increase your ROI.
- A/B Split Testing: A/B testing is the gold standard for optimizing your website. It removes all the guesswork, enabling experienced optimizers to make data-backed decisions.
- Upsells + Downsells: By showcasing these to your customers, you’ll be able to make more cash right away.
- Live Chat: Live chat software is the perfect way to convert more visitors into customers. It is a lot like a face-to-face interaction in that it is incredibly engaging.
- Remarketing Or Retargeting: With success rates of only about 2% for first-time visitors, remarketing is the only way to reach the other 98% of people.
- Testimonials + Social Proof: Testimonials and Social Proof give consumers confidence in your offer and products.
The bottom line is that funnels only work if they convert. Whether you are optimizing your marketing or sales funnel, I hope you’ll find these tips helpful when digging into the analytics. If all this is just too much for you to do on your own, or you want an expert set of eyes, my team and I are here to help! Schedule a consultation today.
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