By John Brackett, its founder Smash balloonThe world’s leading social media feed plug-in for WordPress.
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Have you noticed an unusually low conversion rate on your product landing pages? If so, you’re in the right place. A growing business below the average conversion rate could put it on track. There is nothing as frustrating as seeing your sales numbers stagnate, or worse, looking downward.
Believe it or not, many of these issues can be attributed to your product’s landing pages. If you can’t convince readers that your product or service is worth their time, they probably won’t take action on your website in the future. I know this sounds scary at first, but optimizing your landing pages for more conversions is easier than you think.
My goal today is to show you some of the strategies I’ve used over the years to fine-tune our product pages for maximum sales and engagement. Let’s start by talking about the most important part of a product page: description.
1. Write clear, convenience-driven descriptions
The first mistake many new business leaders and marketers make is to create feature-rich product descriptions that rarely mention direct benefits. At first glance, the features and benefits may seem similar, but it’s not.
Features are something that your product can do; Benefits are how features help your customers For example, an email marketing firm may advertise a feature that allows users to easily share their email list. The advantage of this feature is that users have more control over their leads and thus, more opportunities to implement personalization and develop deeper customer profiles.
Now, ask yourself this: Which of the above two examples is more readily available and easier to understand for new email marketers? The obvious answer is descriptions that include features as well as benefits
When writing a description of your product, be sure to clearly explain how each feature will help potential customers. It doesn’t matter how impressive your list of features is; If users do not know what this means for them, they will probably leave your site without a second thought.
2. Include helpful pictures and product displays
It doesn’t matter if you sell physical products or digital products, your landing pages should always feature several images and at least one video or product. Visual media is a great way to sell your product and show visitors what they can gain by shopping on your site.
Choosing images for your product is difficult, especially if you sell SaaS or other digital items. For brands that have physical products, I recommend taking several photos with your product in an environment that looks like a place where your customers need it.
Have you ever visited a furniture site that shows a sofa in a completely white background where there is no other furniture in the picture? If so, you know it’s hard to imagine where the couch would fit in with the rest of your room. This same principle can be applied to selling anything from furniture to lawn care equipment, to physical.
If your product is digital, you may want to take a picture of your product during the key stages of the setup process and after using it. These images will show viewers the essentials of your software or product, such as layout and accessibility options.
3. Highlight social evidence
In marketing, social evidence is the idea that people base their shopping decisions on the actions of others. For example, when a friend recommends a seafood restaurant on the street and you decide to try it based on their opinion, you have personally felt the power of social proof. Highlighting social evidence for digital marketing businesses makes it easier than ever, especially on their product pages.
The most effective way to highlight social evidence on your product pages is to let new visitors see reviews from existing customers. I encourage customers to leave a review by sending a follow-up email with a direct link to their purchased product. When new visitors see that your brand and products are respected and trusted by other members of the community, they are more likely to do things like subscribe to an email list or make a purchase.
I also use live sales notifications on our site so people can see when other customers are actively buying a product from our catalog. You can find lots of tools that make it easy to show and customize live sales notifications based on how users work on your site.
There is no question that social proof is a sure way to get more landing page conversions. You need to make the most challenging choices to decide how to implement this strategy across your brand.
4. Make it easy for visitors to find answers
The final thing I want to cover today is how you can make it easier for visitors to find answers on your product pages. We all thought of placing an order on an e-commerce website but there were some questions about the product or service In many cases, a quick response can make or break your decision. The same can be said for your target audience.
You never want to put potential customers in a position where they have questions about your brand but don’t know where to look for help. You will be happy to know that there is a relatively simple way to reduce this problem. I recommend including an FAQ section at the bottom of each product page. Use this opportunity to answer the 5 to 10 most common questions that come up during a customer support conversation.
This method can dramatically improve your conversion rate. Not only will this strategy help you connect with potential customers, but you can also use it to improve your SEO strategy.
The latest thought
There you have it! These four strategies are all powerful ways to persuade first-time visitors to take action on the landing pages of your product and similarly return customers. Be sure to adjust your strategy over time so you can provide your audience with an exceptional user experience.