Ecommerce Conversion Rate Article

[darren atkinson]

Hi Everyone,

Following up my previous blog post on SEO Vs PPC effectiveness, I have just published my latest one about Conversion Rates.

I hope it illustrates how important this aspect of ecommerce really is.

http://www.darrenatkinson.co.uk/blog/conversion-rates-make-the-most-of-your-visitors/

Kind regards

Darren

[SillyJokes]

Again you make a great point.

You can be no 1 on google for your favoutire search term but if your website looks like it was built by Noddy and Big Ears you are missing a trick.

[Christiane]

Cool, according to the calculation rate as explained in your article I have about 5% :D
(taking unique vistors as per google analytics and number of sales on my website)

Thanks for sharing the article.

[IainW]

Those conversion rates always seem so low don't they? if for me (Travel) i was answering 100 phone calls and only getting 1 or 2 bookings i would be rethinking my telephone technique, if i had a shop and 100 customers walked in and 98 walked out without booking i would think i was doing something wrong, but I'm getting used to the idea now - i understand it's an expensive product for customers to buy online, when customers book online it's not just the happiness of a booking for me but i am also pleased we have made a customer TRUST us enough to part with his money.

If it was a horse you wouldn't bet on it would you.

Maybe i expect too much in wanting a higher conversion rate.

Brilliant article Darren

[SteveGibson]

The point of the article is important.

Since the inception of internet marketing, most of the focus has been on traffic generation.

So, the next big area of opportunity will be what happens "post click".

And increasing "visitor value" isn't just about increasing conversion rate, there are two other aspects to consider

(1) Profit per sale

(2) Number of residual sales

So, if you've currently got:

20,000 new visitors per month
2% conversion rate
£50 profit per sale
average of 3 purchases per client

Then, each month, you're generating

20,000 * 2% * £50 * 3 = £60,000 (current and future profits from your traffic)

Increase all the post click elements by just 10%:

20,000 new visitors per month
2.2% conversion rate
£55 profit per sale
average of 3.3 purchases per client

20,000 * 2.2% * £55 * 3.3 = £79,860

A 33.1% increase in profits without increasing traffic.

Steve

PS There are actually three other aspects to consider, the other one is referrals, but I wanted to keep the model simple.

[Coding Monkey]

I don't entirely agree with Price being your #1 point about making more sales. It's often a bad business plan to try and beat everyone on price, as there's always someone who can beat you at it. I recall a study that found around 70-75% of people don't shop online for price, but for convenience. Price will just be 1 factor, depending on the type of person buying who is purely driven by price, ahead of value.

[SillyJokes]

if i had a shop and 100 customers walked in and 98 walked out without booking i would think i was doing something wrong

I think comparing conversion of 100 visits to a website to 100 people walking into a shop in flawed because what you have with a shop is thousands of people walking past the window and never walking in. The 100 who actually come through the door could be a tiny percentage of those who have seen the shop in one day. They are utterly pre-qualified and already really know what it is you do.

I suppose this is what is meant by footfall and why it is so important to have a shop wiuth a very high one, just as traffic is important for a website.

Those that wander onto a website won't know if you can help them until they land - which is why it is so important to make it clear what you do on every page.

[sirearl]

I may have missed it,But sureley conversion rates are linked to the value of the goods/services on offer.I.E one would not expect the same rate flogging Ferrari's as £2.00 tea shirts ?

[darren atkinson]

The point of the article is important.

And increasing "visitor value" isn't just about increasing conversion rate, there are two other aspects to consider

(1) Profit per sale

(2) Number of residual sales




Steve, your are entirely correct in my opinion.

The article doesn't even touch on aspects such as using enhanced layouts to attain a higher average spend per visitor.

I thought the article was too long as is really, and I feel many businesses would benefit from the basic advice that is contained in it.

I will probably write about some more advanced topics another post sometime.

Regards

Darren

[darren atkinson]

I don't entirely agree with Price being your #1 point about making more sales. It's often a bad business plan to try and beat everyone on price, as there's always someone who can beat you at it. I recall a study that found around 70-75% of people don't shop online for price, but for convenience. Price will just be 1 factor, depending on the type of person buying who is purely driven by price, ahead of value.

Looking back over the article it does make out price is the number one factor, however I didn't intend this to be the case. The points are not in any order, maybe I should make this clearer.

Price is just one factor of many, and I thought it would be one that people would be more familar with the reasons why it could affect conversion rates.

Regards

Darren

[darren atkinson]

I may have missed it,But sureley conversion rates are linked to the value of the goods/services on offer.I.E one would not expect the same rate flogging Ferrari's as £2.00 tea shirts ?

Yes, conversion rates are often linked with the type of goods on offer.

The article points out that different industry sectors have different levels of conversion rates.

However, it doesn't really matter. If you could increase your Ferrari websites conversion rate by even a small fraction it would be worth alot in extra business, just as if you managed to raise a T-Shirt retailers conversion rate.

Regards

Darren

[kimmrunner]

I don't entirely agree with Price being your #1 point about making more sales. It's often a bad business plan to try and beat everyone on price, as there's always someone who can beat you at it. .

Agree with CM entirely.

In fact price should be nowhere near the top of that list:

You can increase far more by using upsells - or combining your (commoditiy) product with other things to make the offer distinct.

Copy and ( credibility as part of copy) are critical.


A hundred things make a massive difference, here are some test results from just ONE sales letter

(a) Replacing an optin " register here for free newsletter " with
"If you have an email account you too can discover..." 76.2%

(b) REMOVING Header graphic increased optins by 48%

(c) Long copy vs short copy increased 172%

(d) Change black to red on the headline…..26%

(e) Testimonial at the top?..reduced by 48%

(f) Headline in quotes ….11% increase.

(g) Adding signature graphic to a testimonial 43.76%

(h) Changing Indent…27% reduction…

(i) Got rid of dear friend….. Salutation 14% increase

(j) Subhead - added a picture and box 40%

(j) Change picture to left…22% copy on right.

(k) Background colours…dark blue works…..
Pure white control won
Black beat blue….alll only 2% difference


(l) Johnston boz at top 20% Dashed box increased a further 30%

(m) replacing "Order now" in box
with text link no box….388% 4* better………….

(n)Changing from "regards" to a benefit message
“ to improving your conversion rate “…. 249%

The difference copy can make is massive.

COnversion and testing are the most misunderstood parts of internet marketing

Has anyone seen the DVD of andy jenkins multiply his online shop sales by 4 just by tinkering and testing...fascinating

[sirearl]

Agree with CM entirely.

In fact price should be nowhere near the top of that list:

You can increase far more by using upsells - or combining your (commoditiy) product with other things to make the offer distinct.



I can't agree 70% of purchases are based on price,and our experience is that if we are not competative in this area sales are poor,so I spend quite a bit of time checking out the competition to make sure we are 10 pence cheaper :)

Fascinating info on your sales letter post.Mega usefull :)

Earl

[darren atkinson]

Agree with CM entirely.

In fact price should be nowhere near the top of that list:

You can increase far more by using upsells - or combining your (commoditiy) product with other things to make the offer distinct.

Copy and ( credibility as part of copy) are critical.



Hi

I pointed out (just before you posted) that Price is simply one factor I have chosen to show as I thought people would be able to instantly recognise it as an affecting factor.

Price is not the no. 1 factor.

Your post is interesting, thanks for sharing.

I would say that for ecommerce retailers selling branded products, then in my opinion price is quite important, not the no.1 factor no, but definitely important.

If you had 2 identical websites selling the same product, but one was cheaper I would expect that the cheaper site would attract more sales.

I realise 2 websites with exactly the same level of factors to influence a sale is highly improbable, but even 2 different sites with similar traits, both instilling a similar level of trust in a consumer, the site with a more competitive price would surely attract the most business.

Many times I see people asking why their site isn't selling enough products and I can see that as a potential customer it takes just a minute or so to find a site with a better price.

More often than not their sites could be vastly improved upon in terms of usability and trust building, but if they can't compete with a larger, more popular, and 'seemingly' more trustworthy competitor on price then maybe their full business model needs some more work.

However, if they could offer a similar, or in some cases, better price, then their potential for both their site and business is far greater.

I'm probably leaving the realms of conversion rates now and venturing into business models as a whole, so I'll end it there.

Thanks for the comments anyway,

Darren

[SteveGibson]

Kimrunner

A hundred things make a massive difference, here are some test results from just ONE sales letter

(a) Replacing an optin " register here for free newsletter " with
"If you have an email account you too can discover..." 76.2%

(b) REMOVING Header graphic increased optins by 48%

(c) Long copy vs short copy increased 172%

(d) Change black to red on the headline…..26%

(e) Testimonial at the top?..reduced by 48%

(f) Headline in quotes ….11% increase.

(g) Adding signature graphic to a testimonial 43.76%

(h) Changing Indent…27% reduction…

(i) Got rid of dear friend….. Salutation 14% increase

(j) Subhead - added a picture and box 40%

(j) Change picture to left…22% copy on right.

(k) Background colours…dark blue works…..
Pure white control won
Black beat blue….alll only 2% difference


(l) Johnston boz at top 20% Dashed box increased a further 30%

(m) replacing "Order now" in box
with text link no box….388% 4* better………….

(n)Changing from "regards" to a benefit message
“ to improving your conversion rate “…. 249%


Were these sequential tests against ever improving controls or tests against a static control?

(ie each change tested against the same oroginal copy)

If it was sequential, what was the final %ge increase in conversion?

The difference copy can make is massive.

In my newsletter last month, I wrote:

"You might not get a 400% increase like my PPC client but, with a few simple tests, you could probably double your online sales without doing anything to increase your traffic.

I’ll say that again: try changing a few things on your site and monitor the results. You’ll probably find that you can make a series of improvements. And that those improvements add up so they (at least) double the income you receive from your website.

Or, to put it another way: right now your website is probably making less than half the money it should be."

(emphasis added)

but if they can't compete with a larger, more popular, and 'seemingly' more trustworthy competitor on price then maybe their full business model needs some more work.

Good point ... and one of the reasons I'm glad I'm not selling a commodity.
When you hire me, you get me. None of my competitors can offer you that.

(I'm not being arrogant - Kimrunner, Darren, Freeform, 10yetis, Sirearl, Tin and the other marketers/consultants can all say the same thing about themselves - I'm just pointing out the benefit of being a major part of what you're selling)

Steve

[kimmrunner]

I can't agree 70% of purchases are based on price,and our experience is that if we are not competative in this area sales are poor,so I spend quite a bit of time checking out the competition to make sure we are 10 pence cheaper :)

Fascinating info on your sales letter post.Mega usefull :)

Earl

Personally I would never enter a market which was such a commodity that price was the only issue and no USP was possible - but even then there are things you can do.

The only way I would compete on a commodity, is using unusual upsells or combination products, that made sure my offer was different: the free gift report, or books in combination, the bonus voucher, whatever anything to give me a USP

AND then direct market those customers outside the gaze of competition with high end products.

[kimmrunner]

Kimrunner



Were these sequential tests against ever improving controls or tests against a static control?

(ie each change tested against the same oroginal copy)


Steve

They were proper split tests against a control for just one letter.

I AM NOT saying you can take any of the results as transferable to anything else, unless tested.

What I AM trying to show to the readers here, is it is amazing how small details can make dramatic difference to conversion rates - and everything needs testing.

Seem to remember the all up improvement from the original copy was around 800-900% it was one of Mike Fortins experiments.

Thats 8 * sales, with no extra traffic:

Needs a headline something like.....

"Who else would like an 800% increase in income, in less than two weeks time, for changing just 100 words..and then sitting back with your feet up!!"

"Its a hard life!"

[rroebuck]

Hello! Just noticed your discussion about conversion rates. ClearSaleing, online marketing agency, has a tool called the Conversion Rate Index. The CRI is a tool that measures and tracks your conversion rate and allows you to compare it to your competitors.

[Pete Williams]

Recently I went through a slump so I started tinkering as you do.

We have one line of "entry level" cues that we have been selling in our store for over 2 years. They have always been on the website but not once had anyone purchased until about 6 weeks ago.

What changed?

An increase in price of on average 40% across this range and the offer of Free UK delivery.

We are not the cheapest by far and yet sales of this line have dramatically improved from zero to around 3 units per week. Ok not talking millions but every little helps to coin a well known phrase!

[glenb]

Hi all

We work for a lot of e-commerce companies and there's been some research released this week that confirms our gut instincts about adding phone numbers on your site that make an impact in conversions.

Check out the post on our blog (http://www.goresponse.co.uk/blogposts/etailers_failing_to_provide_contat_details.php).

Cheers
Glen

Glen Blow
GoResponse
Award Winning Call Centre & Telephone Answering Services
web: www.goresponse.co.uk
blog: www.goresponse.co.uk/call_centre_blog.php
t: 0800 043 0443

[Phil_@_MPP]

We work for a lot of e-commerce companies and there's been some research released this week that confirms our gut instincts about adding phone numbers on your site that make an impact in conversions.


I definitely agree with this article, as its a very important part for myself to trust the site I am purchasing from. Although price has been mentioned alot in this thread, I think more attention needs to made to contact details, from phone numbers to email addresses to postal addresses, it all helps the customer feel safer.

[OhSoCherished]

There's quite a bit of talk about trusting a website.

What actually makes potential customers trust a site?
Apart from easily found contact details.

I'd be interested to know peoples comments or what's worked for them :|

[momim71]

good seo article