There are many approaches to designing a website that converts. Strategies like going for a familiar-yet-exciting aesthetic appeal, investing in UX, and optimizing for mobile devices have proven to boost conversions time and again.
But the thing is, hurting your conversions with poor design choices is just as easy as increasing them with good ones. That’s why knowing what on-site conversion killers you need to avoid will be essential in ensuring that your business website performs its absolute best (and hopefully gets you a conversion rate higher than the 2021 average of 4.6%).
So, let’s get down to business. The following are the five most common on-site conversion killers you need to avoid and fix.
1. Generic Calls to Action
Nine years ago, 70% of small businesses didn’t include a call to action on their website. This naturally caused them to lose precious customers, but fortunately, things have changed significantly since then.
Not only do designers and marketers understand the importance of well-worded CTAs, but they also know where to place them. Our understanding of CTA buttons has progressed so much over the past decade. We now know that, for example, red-colored CTAs outperform those that use green hues.
But here’s the thing. With so much precise information about the DOs and DON’Ts of designing CTA buttons, most brands have started going with the same old design choices.
And, sure, this does offer some benefits since consumers appreciate familiar design. However, it also causes businesses to water down their visual branding, missing out on the opportunity to separate themselves from the competition.
And let’s not even get started on the fact that most businesses tend to use one of 10 common phrases in their CTAs. Just check out the screenshots below.
As you can see, Nifty and Monday.com use identical (we could say generic) calls to action, despite being competitors. Now, wouldn’t it be better for these brands to explore somewhat more original ways of getting consumers to convert?
Source: niftypm.com
Source: monday.com
Coming up with a non-generic CTA doesn’t have to be rocket science. And it can even use some of the common conversion-boosting tricks that have proven to work in the past. As long as it allows brands to bring something unique to the table.
Ultimate Meal Plans, for example, alters the wording of its CTA to say “Try free 14 days” instead of the typical “Try free” or “Sign up.” It also uses a shade of red-orange, a design choice made to maximize the chances of converting leads.
Note how well the color fits into the brand’s visual identity. Yes, it’s bold enough to grab visitors’ attention. But it doesn’t make the mistake of looking like just another generic red CTA button straight out of a popular WordPress template.
Source: ultimatemealplans.com
2. Slow Load Times
In addition to not inviting your web visitors to take action on your landing pages (or doing it in a way that’s sure to miss the mark), slow load time is another common conversion killer that can sneak its way onto your website.
According to Google, consumers aren’t too good at patiently waiting for websites to load. A mere 2-second increase in page load times could be raising your bounce rates by as much as 32%.
Source: google.com
So knowing that consumers want sites that are fast and crispy, you’ll want to do your best to deliver on these points. To start off, it’s not a bad idea to get a lay of the land. Test your site for load times and check to see if you can make any improvements.
GTmetrix is an excellent tool for that. It gives you info about page load times, but it doesn’t stop there. It also provides actionable tips you can use to get your site to perform at a higher level (and heighten your chances of converting visitors into customers).
Source: gtmetrix.com
3. Inadequate Product Explanations
Sometimes, the thing getting in the way of converting more customers is not approaching the copywriting process from the end user’s perspective.
This conversion killer is widespread in the tech industry. In the IT sector, brands commonly fall into the trap of thinking that their target audience understands (or even cares about) the technical details that make up the advertised products.
For an excellent example of a failed product description, check out the BenQ website. Instead of taking every single opportunity to win over buyers and maximize conversions, it makes the error of alienating web visitors by using highly technical language in the hero section of the product page. It means nothing to people who aren’t designers or tech nerds.
Source: benq.com
What do the terms “100% Rec.709 and sRGB color spaces” even mean to someone who’s just trying to find a good monitor to enjoy watching movies or gaming in between staring at Excel spreadsheets?
Now compare this to Apple’s approach. It utilizes a simple sentence that captures the customer experience: “Believing is seeing.” And in doing so, Apple effectively grabs web visitors’ attention. The user-oriented tactic has a much higher likelihood of scoring a conversion, despite Apple’s product being 12.5x more expensive than BenQ’s. (Of course, we must admit that Apple is an expert at selling premium products to people who don’t need them).
Source: apple.com
So, understanding that your product descriptions play a huge part in ensuring conversions on your site, you should do your best to use communication methods that your target audience will understand.
One great way to do this is through product explainer videos, like the one used by GetSafe. This is an excellent tactic because the combination of visuals and sounds aids information comprehension and retention.
Moreover, this explainer is perfectly scripted to appeal to GetSafe’s target audience. It addresses consumer pain points, offers a solution, and describes how it works without alienating audiences with technical language or irrelevant details.
Source: getsafe.com
Alternatively, you may take a step further and use real-life examples to paint a picture of what your potential customers can expect.
This is what Optimal Workshop does with its Case Studies website section. Here, it describes the specific (and relatable) customer pain points it has tackled and solved. Plus, the brand provides first-time web visitors with an excellent idea of what they can expect if they choose to sign up for its services.
Source: optimalworkshop.com
As you can see, there’s no single formula for increasing conversions with product explanations. However, a good rule of thumb is to first pinpoint the problem your audience wants to solve. Then, focus your energy on explaining how you can help them do that.
4. Substandard Social Proof
Most marketers know the positive impact social proof has on website conversions.
After all, 99.9% of consumers read product reviews when shopping online. Leaving out social proof from your website is akin to professional suicide.
But here’s the thing. Most business sites look at reviews and ratings as a gimmick. They display substandard social proof, which misses the opportunity to communicate high-value information. We’re talking about the kind of info that holds the potential of convincing consumers to convert.
And, sure, this approach might work for industry leaders who already have word-of-mouth marketing working for them (and whose products their target audience already understands). However, for small businesses and startups, this is a grave mistake. And it is very likely to negatively affect conversions.
Fortunately, there’s an easy solution to fixing the social proof on your site. It’s not that difficult to go the extra mile, even if you only have a couple of clients.
For an excellent example of how you can optimize your social proof to boost conversions, check out Mrs. Property Solutions.
This family-owned home buying company knows how tedious and stressful the process of selling a house can be. Moreover, it understands that its target audience may be on the fence about cash offers, as these can come with multiple strings and a fair amount of risk. For this reason, Mrs. Property Solutions takes the time to build trust through social proof. It uses past customer experiences to attract new clients and cement its position as a trustworthy business in a low-trust industry.
If you check out the Reviews page of the site, you’ll see that it includes several instances of social proof:
- Ratings from customer-trusted sites like Google and Yelp
- Video testimonials where existing customers tell their stories in their own words
- Screenshots of text messages and emails sent by satisfied customers
- Reviews embedded from Facebook and Google
Source: mrspropertysolutions.com
As you can see, the brand leaves no stone unturned. And the best thing is, you can easily do the same on your website, effectively convincing the customers in the bottom stages of your sales funnel to choose your brand as the one they put their trust into.
5. Selling Functionality Rather Than Value
Finally, as we end this list of common on-site conversion killers, there’s the question of selling features vs. benefits.
If you look into consumer psychology, you’ll see that people always prioritize received value when making purchasing decisions. And that’s not just in terms of price (though PWC reports that 69% of buyers look for the best deal when shopping online). People also care about convenience, delivery, and even the way products allow them to support their preferred causes like sustainability.
Considering this, your best bet to boost conversions on your site isn’t to go on and on about product features. Instead, you’ll want to find ways to effectively describe how those features benefit your users.
One great way to do this is to zoom in on your target audience’s main pain point. For example, Ring does this with a video that shows several situations in which people might benefit from having a video doorbell.
Source: ring.com
Alternatively, if you can guarantee specific results, you can also describe those in a Benefits section of your homepage, like the one used by Affinda.
Having developed a host of AI-powered solutions, this company recognized that the biggest benefit it offered pertained to team efficiency. So, that’s what it chose to focus on, reminding business owners that even small gains in productivity and accuracy could help them free up time for high-value activities that drive profits.
Source: affinda.com
Now, this approach doesn’t mean that you should completely ignore tech specs on your website. They can be an excellent method to show off your expertise and convince B2B leads to convert.
However, if your focus is B2C, the better way to go forward is to improve how you communicate your brand’s purpose and mission, which Deloitte highlights as must-haves for any marketing strategy for 2022.
In other words, try to use your landing pages to explain how your offer impacts your target audience’s lives. Even if it does so in small ways.
In Closing
There’s more to building up a successful business than converting new customers. Focusing on loyalty, for example, is equally important. Nonetheless, it’s safe to say that no venture can survive below-average conversion rates.
Fortunately, there are super-simple ways to increase conversions on your website. You can use the five conversion-optimization techniques we talked about here to ensure that more of your web visitors turn into customers (or viable leads).
But when implementing these tactics, don’t forget to make them your own – and not just in terms of branding. Be sure to test how they perform and see whether there are any tweaks you need to make to get these strategies to get you better outcomes. Sure, the process won’t happen overnight. But having a clear idea of precisely how each website change impacts your conversion rates will give you the insights required to make the best possible choices for your brand and beat your competition without having to work twice as hard as they do.
