Your first-time website visitors won’t buy from you
One of my beauty salon clients recently asked me why she averages 600-700 new visitors to her website monthly but isn’t booking nearly as many appointments.
Well, the truth is, that first-time visitors don’t buy from you. You’re also unlikely to buy from a business website you’ve only visited once. New visitors are in a browsing phase and they’re mostly browsing for information and doing their comparison shopping.
It can take a visitor up to 8 visits before they decide to buy from you. But there are ways to speed that up and help a visitor to engage with you to finally buy from you.
I’m going to state the obvious, a surefire way to lose a visitor forever and right away, is to have a lackluster website, and one that looks unprofessional.
There are really three types of website visitors, this will help you think about their profile as you strengthen your website for engagement.
The three types:
Visitors who know what they are looking for and are familiar with your business
They know what they want but aren’t sure if you’re the right fit
They’re not sure what they need, and they’re in the earliest stages of researching
In order to help visitors types 2 and 3 we need to ensure we have optimal user experience and the right types of content so they can do their research well while they’re exploring your website.
Below are content types you should consider adding or having on your website to help visitors in the research stage engage with your content and eventually feel good about reaching out to you.
User-Generated Content
Reviews and Testimonials: By featuring customer reviews and testimonials, we can build trust and create a sense of community. It’s about showing prospective customers that their peers have had positive experiences with us.
Engaging Videos
Showcasing Products/Services: Videos can be a dynamic way to showcase our products or services. They are more engaging than static images and can provide a clearer understanding of what we offer.
Behind-the-Scenes Clips: Sharing behind-the-scenes content can humanize our brand and make visitors feel connected to our story and team.
Compelling Calls to Action (CTAs)
Clear and Motivating: Well-placed CTAs can guide visitors to take the next step, whether it’s subscribing to a newsletter, downloading a resource, or taking part in a special offer.
Varied and Creative: Using different types of CTAs across the website keeps the experience fresh and engaging for the user.
Product and Service Descriptions
Well-written service and product pages are important, especially highlighting the value and benefits of your product. This is a fine line of being detailed enough that they will reach out for more information. The goal isn’t to include every bit of information because they’ll likely not want to read long paragraphs.
Informative and Relevant Blogs
Regular Posts: Consistently updated blogs can keep visitors returning. It’s a chance to provide value through informative, entertaining, or educational content.
Engagement Through Comments: Encouraging comments and actively responding to them can foster a community feeling and keep conversations going.
Showcasing Our Work Through a Portfolio
Highlighting Case Studies/Projects: Our portfolio can serve as a testament to our skills and success, showing potential customers what we’re capable of.
Storytelling: Each portfolio piece can tell a story, not just about the project but about the challenges, solutions, and results, making it more relatable and engaging.
Integrating Social Features
Social Media Links and Feeds: Including our social media feeds or links on the website can connect visitors to our broader community and keep them engaged across different platforms.
Conclusion
These features are not just about capturing immediate sales but about building long-term relationships around your brand and helping visitors convert to customers. I would love to hear your thoughts on this and any ideas you might have to further enrich our visitor engagement.
If you’re looking for design support to improve the performance of your website. Reach out for a no-obligations chat.