If you built a website and established an online presence to attract more clients, then you’re on the right track. These days, most advisors recognize that a well-executed digital marketing strategy is essential to the growth of their practice.
But what if your website visitors aren’t “converting”? In other words, they aren’t following your call to action, filling out the contact forms, and hitting the ball into your court so that you can contact them in the future. This is a frustrating problem, but the solutions aren’t all that difficult. Just imagine how your website looks from a prospect’s point of view, and you will see what we mean…
Problem Number 1: Before giving you their business, a prospect will often research you online. They land on your website, and right away they encounter a few problems. The site takes too long to load, or the home page is cluttered. There are too many images and options, and the visitor feels overwhelmed or confused. Too much information can be a bad thing!
The solution: Streamline your website design, removing unnecessary sidebars or images, so that you keep the focus on your content.
Problem Number 2: Your prospect is researching you, using their smart phone or tablet. As your site loads, the design doesn’t fit the screen and your prospect has trouble finding the right information. They quickly give up and tap the back button, and you never get to make contact with them. Since more website traffic originates from mobile devices than laptop or desktop computers (according to Google statistics), you’re losing quite a few opportunities this way.
The solution: Keep your viewers’ interest by optimizing your website for mobile devices. Eliminate long load times and make sure the design works well on smaller screens.
Problem Number 3: Your visitors browse your website, and are satisfied with what they see… but they don’t know what to do now. Assuming they will give you a call if they ever need your services, they move along to do something else. But they never call you, because they quickly forget the experience.
The solution: You have your viewers’ attention for only a few minutes, so this might be your only opportunity to turn a one-time viewer into a regular contact. Write a clear, compelling call to action. Or better yet, use a brief video for your call to action! Ask your viewers to provide their contact information in exchange for something they will value. This puts the ball in your court, so that you can contact them in the future.
Problem Number 4: Your web prospect reads your call to action, and they feel mildly interested in your offer. But they still aren’t sure if they want to follow through. Their indecision leads them to click the back button and turn their attention elsewhere.
The solution: Reassure your viewer that they are making a good choice, by using a click trigger. Click triggers are small bits of text that prompt the viewer to take action, such as:
- transparency (prospects learn what is asked of them, and what they will receive)
- a promise (that your offer is free, you won’t share their contact information, you won’t spam them, and so on)
- a few benefits of your offer
- a reminder that you aren’t asking for a commitment
A well-worded click trigger is often enough to prompt an unsure website viewer to go ahead and fill out that contact form.
Problem Number 5: Your prospect decides to follow your call to action, and provide you with their contact information. But when the form appears on their screen, it’s lengthy, takes too much time, and requires them to jump through hoops proving they are human. Frustrated, the viewer leaves your website – just when you almost had a new contact!
The solution: Simplify that form! Remember, you are asking your website viewers to take a moment of their time to do something for you. So make sure it only takes a moment.
It can be frustrating to see that your website receives traffic, and yet only a few of those viewers ever make contact with you. But when you implement the above five fixes, you can resolve the problems that most commonly prevent conversions. Your website is one of the most powerful tools at your disposal; maximize every aspect of it, and make the most of its potential!