Did you know that if you can keep your web audience on your page for more than 30 seconds your chances of conversion skyrocket? That means you have half a minute to make that viewer into a customer and its about way more than just an attractive landing page.
Understanding website psychology is the key to making your online business a success. Even if you have all the basic components of a good website, you will lose customers if you don’t understand how website psychology impacts your audience. Read on for four important website building tips that will boost your conversion rate.
Make it worth it
The biggest obstacle you have to overcome when driving your audience towards a call-to-action is their cost to benefit ratio. Is their perceived risk of receiving spam emails worth the benefit of the knowledge they will gain from your free e-book? You need to keep the idea of cost/benefit in mind when creating the funnel points in your site. Make sure at those crucial pages (opt-in page, order finalization, etc.) that you clearly highlight the benefits. Your audience will also quickly give up if your process is lengthy.
Put it in action: Put customer testimonials on your check out page so to highlight the benefit of your product or service.
Make it short
The old saying “time is money” rings true with website psychology. In this case, the less time your customer has to spend the more likely they are to purchase your product or subscribe to your services.
Simplicity and concise language are your best friends. You may lose your customer’s trust if they perceive your information or directions as confusing. We are naturally suspicious of things we don’t understand. And, just as the fine print in contracts can be used as a “gotcha” for unsuspecting signers, your audience doesn’t want to be confused into making a choice. They are much more likely to leave your page than to ask questions.
Also, make your call-to-action process as straightforward as possible. Do not include any optional fields and keep any forms to one page or less.
Put it in action: Try cutting out 10% of the text on your page and see if you can still get your point across. Repeat the process and cut out 10% more until you are left with only what is necessary.
Make it easy
– Fitts’s law
Fitts’s law states that the larger a target is the better chance there is of the customer hitting it. Your call to action buttons should be larger and more attractive than the opt-out. The less your customer has to click or move their mouse the better. In a series of pages to click through do not make your customer move their mouse from top to bottom of the page to click through. The less effort and time it takes your customer to physically click through your site, the more likely they are to complete your call-to-action.
– Familiarity
Think about what your customer is familiar with on websites. On crucial pages making the format familiar to your customer will decrease the friction of them making that decision to buy or opt in. For example, making your check out process similar to Amazon is a big plus. Most people are familiar with it and will move through it quickly. By having a similar appearance, you ease any worries about entering personal information by playing off the trust that they have in Amazon.
Website appearance is a fine art. The way you use font, white space and color sends several messages to your audience and some of them are subliminal. The psychology of color is a deep topic that you can use to motivate your audience towards your call to action. Font conveys a message about your company and can build trust if you use it correctly. Check out this great infographic on fonts for a quick reference. And, as in life, what you do not say is just as important as what you do. Your audience can only take in so much information at a time so make good use of white space on your page. Putting the most important information out there without all the details will grab attention and prevent eye confusion.
Make it personal
Even in this age of mass sales and technology you still need a personal touch. It’s a proven fact that people respond more positively to a smiling face than just text or pictures. Use photos to connect with your audience and elicit a positive response. Know your demographic and make sure your photos are representative of them.
In the past when sales were made in person, there were many rules that successful businesses followed: firm handshake, smile, be knowledgeable, be honest, etc. The same is true today now that most sales are online. Though the rules are not the same there are still many ways to use psychology to draw your audience in and make that sale.
