Conversion Rate 101

A new quarter always brings a unique feeling of a fresh start, but when you're in the digital marketing industry, it's easy to get overwhelmed with upcoming trends, ad costs, content, etc. 

Today, I'd like to focus on something that is ignored a lot, and that is the conversion rate. 

What is a conversion rate? "The conversion rate is the number of conversions divided by the total number of visitors. For example, if an e-commerce site receives 200 visitors in a month and has 50 sales, the conversion rate would be 50 divided by 200, or 25%." ~ Optimizely.com 

The conversion rate varies by industry and also by business. Being in the same industry as your business bestie does not guarantee you'll have the same conversion rate.

Why a low conversion rate?

✨ Traffic is low

✨ There's no product demand

✨ Limited inventory *very important, more below*

✨ Your Website needs work, which is also essential! 

✨ website not optimized for mobile purchases 

Let me elaborate on the limited inventory part. On average, it takes a person 5-7 visits before the conversion happens. Most users come and go before they make a purchase. However, by the time they return, the product is no longer available, which is typical in retail. 

Four tips to improve your conversion rate:

1. Make an honest assessment of your website. Did you design it yourself? It might be time to hire a pro for it. 

2. Avoid using stock photos; those don't help at all. Not to mention that using the same photos as everyone else sets the expectation that the price will be the same everywhere. You lose credibility here. 

3. Promote products you can restock quickly or services you have availability for. 

4. Use email marketing automation or flows! Those dynamic campaigns can grab your users without retargeting with paid ads.

I hope these tips were helpful and that your quarter is off to great start!