How to Increase Your Conversion Rate Through Web Design

For any business with an online presence, monitoring your conversion rate is important because conversion is what gets you customers, sales, and leads. The conversion rate is the percentage of users who have taken action on your website divided by the total number of site visitors. If 1,000 customers come to your site and 5 of them sign up for an account, you have a 0.5% conversion rate. Ideally, your goal should be to increase your conversion rate since this could directly translate to profit and brand loyalty.

The link between web design and conversion rate

A well-designed website does more for your business than you think - have a look at the services Sortlist offer. Here are a few statistics that may enlighten you on how much design impacts user behavior:

38% stop browsing a site if it’s unattractive
75% judge a business’ credibility based on its website
40% leave a website if it loads too slowly

Given all this, it’s clear why you need to invest in professional web design services to revitalize your business’ reputation. Indianapolis web design companies offer some advice on where they think business websites can improve to increase their conversion rate.

Optimize your website

Website design doesn’t just refer to the visual appeal of your site, it also has to do with functionality and compatibility with various devices and browsers. With the oversaturation in the market, what will set you apart in the consumers’ eyes is whether your site looks good and is comfortable to navigate. Your site needs to have a modern aesthetic, quick loading speed, intuitive navigation, neat layout, and responsive design so that it’s appealing to a wide range of users.

Improve product or service pages

Your product or service page is your main selling point to the customer. Ensure that all the information is clearly laid out, from the price to the description. Don’t make it too long to avoid overwhelming the customer. Instead of using a block of text, layout the information in a more digestible format, like a table or bullet points. Include reviews or testimonials from previous customers. For products, include photos of the product taken from various angles. Make the shots high-resolution so the customer can inspect it closely. For services, include before and after photos to demonstrate what your service entails.

Streamline the checkout process

For eCommerce sites, the checkout step is the last part of their conversion process, and yet this is where most business owners trip up in terms of site design. Most customers claim that poor checkout design is the reason they failed to convert, so if your site has any of the following issues, resolve it right away so you can improve your conversion rate instantly.

Checkout process too long or complex. Having a checkout process that’s too long will deter your user from completing their purchase. Your checkout process only needs an information collection step and a payment step.
Preferred payment option not available. Your site should accept as many payment options as possible. If you’re offering your products to international buyers, be sure you have convenient payment options for them too. At the very least, your payment options should include credit/debit cards, PayPal (or other digital wallet services), bank transfers or ATM payments, etc.
Required to make an account. Users see having to make an account as an unnecessary and time-consuming step. Not only do they have to input their information, but they also have to verify their email, which takes them out of the site. Allow them to checkout as a guest and entice them to make an account with you through other means.
Shipping too slow. We live in a time where users want their items fast, and if you don’t offer express shipping, they will most likely look towards your competitors instead.
Unexpectedly high fees. Most users will likely choose not to proceed with their purchase if the shipping fees and taxes add up to a total that’s equivalent to or higher than the price of the item they want to buy. To avoid such a scenario, you could incorporate the shipping fee with the price of the item. Experts discovered that people react more positively to seeing a $10 item + 5$ shipping and taxes combination than an $8 item + $7 shipping and taxes combination, even though the total is the same. You could also implement a base price for shipping so that users already have a general idea of how much their total is even before checkout.

Use calls to action (CTA)

The right CTA can encourage users to do what it is you want them to. If your goal is to get the user to make an account or leave their email, make them an offer that’s hard to refuse, like a free eBook or a discount for their next purchase. You can also use urgent language like limited time only to push them to make an impulse decision.

Minimize interruptions to the user

Pop-ups and redirects to ask your users to make an account or leave their email may seem like a good idea from a marketing standpoint, however, from the user’s point-of-view, it’s just an annoying thing that disrupts their browsing experience. This annoyance will work against you because now they’re less likely to convert. Instead of having a pop-up that takes up the whole page and forcing the user to click on a button to disable it, have the offer show up as a small widget on the corner of the screen. This is enough to catch their attention without breaking their rhythm.

For those businesses struggling to improve their conversion rate, maybe all you need is a site overhaul. Indianapolis web design agencies offer all the skills you need to build a site that’s primed for conversion. They have experience working with businesses from various niches, so if you need a fun and quirky site for a clothing brand that’s geared towards Gen Z or a more mature and professional business-to-business site, they’ve got you covered.