If you live in the world of Internet marketing, then you’re at least aware of conversion rate optimization — the practice of creating an online experience that causes a greater percentage of website visitors to convert.
Merely being aware of conversion optimization is where it ends for most online marketers. In fact, only 39% of marketers consider conversion optimization to be a priority. They focus instead upon content marketing, social media, and brand or viral efforts. All marketing initiatives are significant in their own right, but conversion optimization ought to take a more prominent role in marketer’s toolbox.
Why? Let me explain with four simple points. The entire point of this article is pretty simple. I want to persuade marketers to do more conversion optimization. Consider why.
1. Conversion optimization plain works.
There are plenty of marketing methods out there that don’t work.
Here is one of the rookie mistakes in marketing. You feel inspired. You come up with a big marketing idea. You execute it, and nothing happens.
Marketing is more science than it is dream-fueled inspirations ir flights of ecstatic genius. Those enraptured moments do come (occasionally), but they do not constitute the core of marketing.
Marketing is an exacting science. It is built by sweat, fueled by metrics, sharpened by analysis, and confirmed by tests, research, and studies. As an example, consider conversion optimization.
One of the core methods of a conversion optimizer is A/B testing, also known as split testing. Split testing uses controlled settings to determine which version of a website gets more conversions — site A or site B. Not only that, but split testing can identify which single feature of the two variations is responsible for the uptick in conversions.
It’s a far cry from fictional marketing magic, but the results are absolutely powerful. By merely conducting a few simple tests and a few subtle change, a conversion optimizer can improve a website’s conversions by 15%, 70%, or even 2,000%!
Obviously, you’re not going to hit the conversion jackpot with every split test you perform. Over time, however, your site will improve. Because conversion optimization just works.
2. Conversion optimization creates measurable improvements.
Want to hear one of the biggest marketing complaints in the history of the world?
“Yeah, we tried that, and it didn’t work.”
I’ve heard marketers make this moan when discussing SEO, content marketing, paid search, video marketing, social media, and just about every other marketing tactic.
Maybe they’re right. Perhaps it’s true that a given tactic didn’t work in a specific situation.
But what about conversion optimization? Conversion optimization is a notable exception in a field littered with the remnants of tactics that “didn’t work.”
Conversion optimization essentially forces improvement through rigorous and patient analysis.
Let me sketch a quick scenario for you. I’ve never heard of a website with normal traffic that has 100% conversion rate. It just doesn’t happen. A 100% conversion rate is theoretically possible, but practically elusive.
Thus, every website with a conversion goal is hovering somewhere in the ether below the 100% mark. In fact, many retail websites consider a 1% or 2% conversion rate to be really good.
If conversion rates are this low, then obviously there is some level of improvement that the website can make.
Conversion optimization finds those areas of improvement, addresses them, tests them, changes them, and then watches the numbers rise. Conversion rates are a measurable number, meaning that the improvements are easy to notice.
It’s this kind of needle-moving that gets marketers excited. When you watch conversion rates move up even by small numbers, you know that your game is improving. Conversion optimization is how it happens.
3. Conversion optimization possesses powerful ROI.
Run a mental scan on this question: What marketing method provides you with the greatest ROI?
If you can find a marketing method with through-the-roof ROI rates, that’s precisely where you want to focus your effort and budget, right?
Let’s put conversion optimization in the ROI spotlight for just a second. What is the ROI of conversion optimization?
By way of personal example, I spent over a quarter million on conversion optimization. My ROI following those efforts was millions of dollars in additional revenue. Other companies report similar results.
It’s important to realize that with conversion optimization, you’re not paying for more visitors. Instead, you’re paying to convert existing visitors into customers. From the beginning of the effort, you already have an advantage simply due to the raw materials of your marketing initiative. You’re dealing with actual visitors, not just the possibility of getting more visitors.
How much do you need to spend to start doing conversion optimization? In all actuality, you don’t need to spend anything if you don’t want to. One of the most effective conversion optimization methods is just improving your copy, as proved by conversion optimization studies.
How much does it cost to write a new headline, insert a few testimonials, or change some wording? If you do it yourself, it costs only the time that you spent doing it. If you hire a freelancer, you’ll pay a few dollars for content. Either way, the changes will pay for themselves dramatically.
4. Conversion optimization increases in power over time.
Your ROI for conversion optimization will, of course, vary. It’s important to understand that your ROI will increase over time. Conversion optimization refines itself continually with every new split testing or multivariate testing cycle, giving you greater rewards every time.
As indicated by E-consultancy/RedEye research, the maturity of conversion optimization increases over time, leading to improved revenue. The more you optimize, the better you optimize. The more you optimize, the more you learn about optimizing. And the longer you do it, the greater validity your tests will possess.
But let’s flip it around for a minute. How much time are you wasting by not doing conversion optimization? Every day that passes you by is a day of lost potential revenue.
As the Chinese proverb states, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”
Conclusion
If you need a grand finale reason for doing conversion optimization in 2015, let me give it to you here in the conclusion. Just doing conversion optimization will put you ahead of most other marketers.
Remember the statement I made at the beginning of this article? Not many marketers are doing conversion optimization, period. If you are one of the few that start doing it, you’re way ahead of the game. Your advantage is nearly unfair.
Go ahead. Bring on 2015. And make this the year that you do conversion optimization.
What conversion optimization plans do you have for 2015?
