How Do You Get Your Website Visitors to… Buy Your Product

If your priority is to get visitors to your website to buy your product, here are strategies that will help:

• Ask Them to Buy. Give them enough information about your product or service so they can make a decision, then ask them to buy, showing payment options prominently (in the example below he features logos of credit cards and Paypal prominently).Explain what they will gain once they own your product or service (in the case below, “Design Your Own Ebook Cover In Minutes.”Then, rather than using the words BUY NOW, you might use softer words, like GET INSTANT ACCESS NOW.In the example below he cleverly captures their contact information first, before the person provides their payment information. This way, if someone does not pay, he could still follow up by sending them emails listing benefits the visitor may not have noticed, and/or perhaps with a special offer or a reduced price.

 

• Don’t Give Them Too Many Choices Up-Front. Even if you have many products or services, have a featured product.National Geographic’s online store has hundreds of products. By having links to all the sections and products on the website while showcasing only one product or product category, they make it easier for web visitors to navigate (and buy) without a feeling of overwhelm. Remember, the more choices you give a person up-front, the harder you make it for them to decide.Here’s another great example of someone with hundreds of products showcasing one product at top, then six products just below that.When you have a large number of products, this is the most important way to increase sales because it gives visitors something specific to focus on initially.Even if they don’t buy one of these featured products, it engages them enough to start searching through your offerings and links. The more pages and images your visitors examine, the more likely you will buy.

• Make it Easy to Get Started. Offer a free or ultra-low cost method for them to try your product or service.For example, although Constant Contact’s email service has several pricing options, they want the visitor to try their service first.So they give the visitor enough information to answer their basic questions about price and features, then invite them to TRY IT FREE.
  
  
  aWeber, who also offers email service, uses a slightly different approach. They ask the visitor to commit $1 to get started today.
  So, are you making it easy for your visitor to try your product, to get started?

 

• If You Have Several Options, Include a Chart. If you have more than one purchase option, include a chart outlining the differences, and highlighted the one you want them to choose. Even if they won’t choose the one you highlight, this focuses the eye and simplifies the mind’s ability to choose.Here’s an example from PRWeb, offering comparative details including pricing for each option.Here’s an example from Zendesk, the online customer service company. They do an excellent job of:
  • laying out all the options,
  • explaining what the visitor gets with each option,
  • highlighting the most popular option,
  • offering a 30-Day Free Trial to entice the visitor to try the most popular option,
  • including TRY and BUY buttons to encourage the visitor to click on the most popular offer (offering them a choice so they feel in control),
  • having a $1 “Starter” option, and
  • including great trust-building text:
    “Pricing. All of it. No hidden fees. (Really.)”:

• 
  Freshdesk, a competitor to Zendesk, use a friendlier-looking options chart that includes a breakdown not just of the features and the monthly cost, but the cost-per-day:
  
  So, if you have several purchase options, have you laid them out in a comparison chart?

• Answer Their Key Questions. When someone is ready to buy, they typically have questions, particularly about the logistics of their purchase. Providing easy-to-find answers will significantly increase your conversion rate and reduce the number of questions you get.For example:
  • If it’s a product, does it ship UPS? USPS? How about Fedex overnight?
  • What payment options do you accept? Visa, Mastercard, Amex, PayPal?
  • Will their credit card information be secure?
  • Do you offer a guarantee?
  • Do you take returns?
  • Do you have answers to commonly asked questions (frequently-asked questions/FAQs)?
  • Is your contact information obvious, in case they have a question or problem?
  • The example below shows:
    • NAV BAR answers key questions – Best Sellers, New—Just In, Gift Ideas, Ordering, Shipping & Returns, Contact Us, and View My Cart;
    • PROMINENTLY ANSWERS THE 3 MOST-COMMON QUESTIONS – (middle-right of the page) Safe & Secure, Fast Delivery, Easy Returns;
    • CREDIBILITY – In the News replay of interview from WBBM News Radio;
    • DELIVERY OPTIONS – FedEx Ground and We Ship UPS logos (bottom right);
    • SEARCH BUTTON – top left has easy search box;
    • PAYMENT LOGOS – Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover and PayPal logos (top right)
    • DETAILED LEFT NAV BUTTONS – Divided by commonly asked-for categories, including Vehicles, Parts & Accessories, and Information
    • INSTRUCTION MANUALS – downloaded from the sites of manufacturers, this gives clients added convenience.

How many of these features would help your own website?

• Offer Customer Support. Have a phone number and/or a prominent customer service support number of live support if possible. Many affordable services are available, incluging:
  • ZenDesk (www.zendesk.com/) – $1 to $59/month
  • Freshdesk (http://freshdesk.com/) – free to $25/month
  • Live Person (http://engage.liveperson.com/) – $25 to $68/month
  • Desk (www.desk.com/) – $3 to $35/monthIf you want to add a customer support phone number but don’t want people to know your actual phone number, simply get a free Google Voice phone number, forward it to your personal or business number, and post that number on your website, something like… “If you have questions, Text Us at 555-555-5555…”
• Offer Text Messaging of Questions. When you invite customers to text you their questions, this can significantly increase your results.For example, with therapists, we found 1-in-5 text messages, where they responded with a text answer, resulted in a new client. (the most common question was about price). When someone responded to the text message with an actual phone call, the results jumped to 3-in-5 converting to a client.To ensure your personal or business phone remains private or doesn’t get overrun with text messages, use a free Google Voice phone number as described above.
• Suggest Additional Items to Buy. Just before or just after your visitor has entered their payment information, suggest additional upsell products (higher-priced versions) and cross-sell products (related or supportive products and services, like offering an extra battery, a protective case, a tripod and extra memory when someone buys a digital camera).Although Amazon.com is the master of this by using software that identifies suggested examples, this can even be done manually.Have you identified additional products and services customers could buy that would support or supplement what they are already buying from you (as the cashiers in McDonald’s restaurants would famously ask, “Would you like fries with that)?

                    

          

Software and customized services for automatically suggesting add-ons, upsells and cross sells when people are buying from you, are available through many vendors including:

• 4Tell.com – Recommendation Types = Cross-Sell, Up-Sell, Personalized, Top Sellers per Category, Overall Top Sellers – $75/month for up to 50,000 page views – www.4-tell.com/pricing/recs-4-web/
• Barilliance – over 20 types of personalized product recommendations across different page types. Top sellers, recommendations based on search engine keywords, similar items, cross-sell and up-sell can be presented on category, search results, shopping cart, product and even the homepage – (request a quote – ideal for revenues above $100,000 – may be $250/month) http://www.barilliance.com/personalized_product_recommendations
• Infusionsoft – www.Infusionsoft.com
• AvantGate – http://www.avangate.com/avangate-resources/article/boost-software-sales.htm
• Loyalty Builders – www.LoyaltyBuilders.com

 

If you’d like details about getting a different “action” — click on a link below

What would you like your website visitors to do?

Buy Your Product | Call for an Appointment | Give You their Phone Number | Send You a Text Message | Schedule an Online Appointment and Pay | Sign Up for a Live Seminar or Webinar | Visit Your Location | Give You their Email Address