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By: Jeff Welsh
Over the past several years, our agency has grown tremendously in the area of helping e-commerce clients achieve greater profitability for their businesses. There are many ways that we can approach this topic, but one of the areas we focus heavily on is a website’s conversion rate.
In an effort to help educate our clients and prospects a bit (especially those that are new to online advertising) I’ve decided it’s important for us to publish some basic information. Therefore, this week we will focus on what conversion rates are and what is considered acceptable results and even a few outstanding numbers as well.
A conversion rate is a crucial metric in e-commerce that measures the percentage of website visitors who complete a desired action, such as making a purchase, signing up for a newsletter, or filling out a form.
The formula for calculating conversion rate is:
Conversion Rate = (Number of Conversions / Number of Website Visitors) * 100
For example, if you had 1,000 visitors to your e-commerce website and 30 of them made a purchase, the conversion rate would be (30 / 1,000) * 100 = 3%.
It's important to note that conversion rates can vary significantly depending on various factors, including industry, target audience, product/service offering, website design, user experience, and marketing strategies. A high conversion rate is generally considered desirable, but what constitutes a "good" conversion rate can vary depending on these factors and the specific goals of the business.
Benchmarking your conversion rate against industry averages and continuously working to improve it through optimization techniques, such as A/B testing, improving website usability, and enhancing product descriptions and images, can help increase the effectiveness of your e-commerce business.
CRO employs various techniques to optimize the conversion funnel and improve conversion rates. Here are some ways CRO can help improve conversion rates:
User Experience (UX) Optimization: By improving the overall user experience, including site navigation, page layout, and ease of use, visitors are more likely to engage with your website and convert. This involves ensuring clear calls-to-action, reducing page load times, and creating responsive designs that work well across different devices.
A/B Testing: CRO often involves conducting A/B tests, where different versions of a web page or element are tested against each other to determine which one performs better in terms of conversions. By experimenting with variations of headlines, images, layouts, or forms, you can identify the most effective elements and optimize accordingly.
Clear and Compelling Messaging: CRO focuses on improving the clarity and relevance of your messaging. By clearly communicating your value proposition, benefits, and unique selling points, you can capture visitors' attention and persuade them to convert.
Streamlining Conversion Funnel: Analyzing user behavior and identifying points of friction or drop-offs in the conversion funnel can help you streamline the process. Simplifying forms, reducing the number of steps required to complete a purchase, and optimizing the checkout process can all contribute to higher conversion rates.
Trust and Social Proof: Building trust with your audience is vital for conversion. CRO involves incorporating trust signals such as customer testimonials, reviews, security badges, and guarantees to instill confidence in your visitors and alleviate any concerns they may have.
Personalization: Tailoring the user experience based on individual preferences and behavior can greatly impact conversion rates. By utilizing data and segmentation, you can deliver personalized recommendations, offers, or content that resonate with each visitor, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
Conversion rate optimization is an ongoing process that requires continuous analysis, testing, and refinement. By systematically optimizing your website or landing pages, you can improve the conversion rate over time and maximize the effectiveness of your e-commerce efforts.
A good conversion rate is subjective and can vary depending on several factors. While there isn't a universally agreed-upon benchmark for what constitutes a "good" conversion rate, below are some general guidelines:
Industry Standards: It can be useful to compare your conversion rate to industry averages or benchmarks. Different industries have varying conversion rates due to factors such as the nature of products/services, purchasing habits, and competition. Research industry-specific data or consult resources that provide average conversion rates for your sector to gain insights into what might be considered good.
Website Type and Purpose: The type of website and its specific goals play a significant role in determining what is considered a good conversion rate. For example, a landing page designed solely to capture email sign-ups might have a higher conversion rate compared to an e-commerce website focused on product purchases. Understand the objectives of your website and set realistic expectations based on its purpose.
Historical Data and Trends: Analyzing your own historical data and tracking trends over time is essential. By monitoring changes in conversion rates and setting improvement goals, you can establish your own baseline and measure success based on the progress you make. Aim for a steady upward trend in your conversion rate.
Target Audience and Traffic Quality: The characteristics of your target audience and the quality of your website traffic can influence what is considered a good conversion rate for your specific situation. Different demographics, customer behaviors, and traffic sources can impact conversion rates. Understanding your audience and optimizing your website to cater to their needs can help you achieve a higher conversion rate.
Business Model and Profit Margins: The business model and profit margins of your products or services are important factors. If you have high-profit margin offerings, you might have a lower conversion rate but still generate significant revenue. Consider the overall profitability of your business when assessing the success of your conversion rate.
Remember that conversion rates are not static and can vary over time. The key is to continuously optimize your website, employ conversion rate optimization techniques, and strive for improvement. It's also essential to align your goals and expectations with your specific business context and industry standards rather than solely focusing on a predefined benchmark.
In general, we target anywhere from 2-5%. If a site is converting 3% of its traffic for an objective, that is considered a good rate. Obviously, the higher the number the better the result. Anything below a 2 is not good.
As you start to analyze data from your campaigns, you can review your numbers and make decisions on what new tests you would like to run to improve your conversions. The more tests you run, the better your optimization should be.
At some point you will probably max out your conversions, but let’s hope that is a long way down the road. If you do reach this point, you have probably oversaturated your offer and it may be time to make some changes.
Impakt Results is an industry leader in CRO services as well as social media targeting ad campaigns. The results we achieve for our clients have proven our knowledge of the space is vast and shows since we have been providing quality services around the world for over a decade.
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