A website should never be a static billboard. It should always be in a constant state of flux as you try to optimize for your audience. Every website has a different look and feel. Visitors likely arrived from a wide variety of sources and for varying purposes so if you have a template you’re building from, you’re work is far from over just because you launched the website.
The needs of customers and sellers differ – and make no mistake, if you run a website, you are trying to sell something (information, services, products, etc) which means you need to be aware pf what the customer wants. Why are they there?
For example, a typical seller follows this process:
(here is a fun clip of high-stakes closing, courtesy of Alec Baldwin)
Whereas a typical buyer would follow this pattern:
Testing allows you to remove the guesswork of trying to find the best way to match the seller’s process with the customer’s desires and find a mutually beneficial outcome. But you have to help the customer and make it easy and you do this by through testing and optimization.
What are some of the items you should be testing? Here are a few examples:
Headline Text
- Questions instead of statements
- Use emotion
- Different types of formatting (bold, color, etc).
- The number of characters in your headline
Call to Action
- Prominence
- Wording
- Color
Product Images
- Size
- Quality
- Angles
Forms
- Drop down
- Send button text
eCommerce
- Number of steps in the process
- Progress indicator
- Stock availability
- Registration options
You are looking for noticeable improvements and you need to measure and track the results so you can remain objective. It is easy to see something that isn’t there if you want to. Don’t let your personal preferences get in the way.
Remember, you aren’t looking for tiny changes. Don’t add a comma and expect to increase your clicks by 100%. Make big changes in those area. Change the font size, color, or try moving content around. Only then will you find what your customer wants.