Is Your Website Leaking? How Adding One Element to a Blog's Sidebar Achieved a 82.14% Lift in Conversions
If you’re getting plenty of traffic but still not seeing sales, it usually means that your offer is not enticing enough to your visitors, or you’re getting the wrong type of traffic. But don’t be too quick to judge, because that’s not always the case. Sometimes, the issue is that people are having trouble finding your offer in the first place.
As with all clients, the first thing we did when beginning our optimization for GNOWFGLINS - a health/cooking/lifestyle website - was to map out the different funnels.
Majority of GNOWFGLINS’ traffic entered through the blog - a trait that is fast becoming common in many of today’s websites, as Google’s algorithm tends to favor quality content more and more. When looking at their funnel for people who entered through an article, we saw a huge drop in visits to the offer page:
This means one of two things:
- The offer is not enticing to the visitor
- The offer is not being noticed at all.
When looking at an article, we noticed there was no call to action. There was a link to the main offer in the navigation, but it was in a pull-down menu. We decided that adding a call-to-action would create a new path that was noticeable to the visitor. Take a look at the variations:
Control: .28% Conversion Rate
Variation: .51% Conversion Rate (+82%)
By adding the call-to-action in the sidebar, we’ve created a new path and made it much easier to notice that they have a membership offer. A good analogy for this is a restaurant with no sign - you’re simply not going to notice it.
Don’t be Annoying
Remember - the real reason the visitor is on the site in the first place is because they believed that the content would be worth reading. Don’t make that experience unenjoyable by getting in their way! Here’s some pointers:
- Don’t make it too distracting: If your call-to-action moves or flashes, you’re doing it wrong.
- Don’t get in the way of reading: If I’m trying to read your homemade lasagna recipe, ”Get my e-book 50% off” shouldn’t be listed as a required ingredient.
- Keep it Simple: There should be no unnecessary copy or elements. Stay away from fluff and vague statements. If you run this test and get results, please let us know in the comments section below!
