If you aren't able to have your visitors convert to a lead then you really know nothing about the traffic that you're attracting, what they're interested in, and you have no idea who to reach out to. One of the first questions that we ask a potential client looking into inbound marketing services is, what do you know about the visitors on your site? What do you know about the people in your database? Unfortunately, the answer is typically something along the lines of, "um...not much".
Giving your visitors helpful content and collecting information from them in order to get that content is vitally important to an inbound marketing campaign. If you're providing valuable content, your visitors will not have any issue filling out a quick form for it. Here are some important items that you need to consider for your website to move a visitor further down your pipeline and have them convert to a lead.
A good call-to-action is one that grabs attention and communicates the value quickly. There are many different kinds of calls-to-action including popups, images, buttons, and even hyperlinks. It's important to understand where your visitors are on your site and what they may be interested based on that information. Make your call-to-action stand out with bright colors, designs, and graphics.
EXPERT TIP: Use calls-to-action as often as possible without being obnoxious. We recommend a call-to-action at the end of each blog post and on any pages that make sense. Pay attention to where each call-to-action is placed. It's important to understand that if, for example, someone is reading your blog post about how to avoid getting a virus on their computer, they're probably not interested in a call-to-action about setting up their email. Be intentional about where you place each CTA.
Landing pages are where your visitors will land after they've clicked on your call-to-action. Your landing pages should be short, sweet, and to the point. Give the visitor information on what you're offering, how it benefits them, and a form to fill out in order to receive the content.
EXPERT TIP: Use the blink test - you should be able to understand what the landing page is for in a second.
EXPERT TIP #2: The more important or exclusive the content, the more information that you can require. If you've put a lot of work into it, require more information, but only collect information that is relevant to your sales process.
EXPERT TIP #3: Do not display your navigation menu on your landing pages. We want the focus of your visitor to be only on that page, not the other information on your website. By removing the navigation menu, you don't give a visitor the option to easily leave the landing page to just check out your website and most likely leave without converting.
Forms are the way that you actually allow a visitor to become a lead. Each form should be created with the content in mind. If you're giving a very small piece of content, the form should require less information. If you're giving out a full eBook, you can and should require more information to get that eBook.
EXPERT TIP: It's important to understand what your visitors and current clients would be willing to share with your business. Requiring sensitive information or more personal information will likely dramatically decrease your conversion percentage.
You need to understand who is visiting your site, how they ended up in your database, when they return, what they're looking at on your site, the source of their visit, and more. Here is where a good CRM becomes very important. Here are a couple of products that we highly recommend:
Another free software to manage your customers and leads. It's very sophisticated and easy to use. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. Even if you don't use the HubSpot CRM, use some sort of CRM. It's important.
Google Analytics is a web analytics service that provides statistics and basic analytical tools for search engine optimization (SEO) and marketing purposes.FINAL EXPERT TIP: ALWAYS deliver on your promises and do it in a timely manner. If you are going to collect information from a visitor in exchange for some sort of content, give that content to them immediately or as soon as possible. Making your leads wait is a great way to lose that person as a potential customer.
It's not enough to have traffic coming to your website. It's not even enough to have qualified traffic coming to your site. If you aren't providing value and giving your visitors the ability to become leads then your website is essentially doing you little to no good. Having a website alone is not a marketing strategy. You need to utilize your website effectively in order to get the most out of it.
In our next post in this series, we'll discuss closing your leads into customers.