Conversion Rates

The Importance of Conversion Rates in Search Engine Optimization

by Mike Briggs
of http://www.oyster-web.co.uk

Last updated: 20 Oct 2006

Conversion rate is a measure of the percentage of visits to your website that result in sales. There are a number of factors which affect the conversion rate, some of which are governed by the site design and some of which are more to do with the nature of the product and the pricing strategy.

Some site design and Content factors include

Good Navigation
if someone comes into the site on a subsidiary page can they get to the rest of the site easily?
Ability to find products easily
using a search facility if necessary.
Ease of Reading
Are your descriptions well formatted into Headings and paragraphs? Is there enough contrast between your text and the background that people will want to read it ? Is it big enough to be read comfortably?
Well specified product descriptions
Can people find enough information about the products to compare them and know what they’re getting if they order them?
Clear Pricing and postage/packing rates
Nothing annoys users like finding an unexpected extra postage charge at the end of the ordering process. Many shopping carts are abandoned at that stage
Good checkout and shopping cart layout
Is it easy to use? Are you happy to put your credit card details into it?

Other related factors are more ephemeral but can be influenced by the site design. For instance the feelings of Security and Trustworthiness of both the site and the company behind it can all be subtly influenced by layout, colour schemes, and image selection.

It should be noted that good SEO should not really be a factor governing conversion rate – SEO brings in Traffic and if it’s been done properly that traffic should already be well-targeted through the selection of Keywords and the targeting and optimisation of the pages that are pointed at in the search results. Only if the SEO has been poorly implemented does the targeting become an issue – in the classic old case where Unethical SEO companies used spammed keywords it was common for sites to be found for terms such as “Britney Spears”, “sex”, “free money”, etc. This is completely useless for either conversion rates or sales if you’re selling garden furniture or hair extensions.

The combination of SEO, good design, and good product selection and pricing, along with Pay-per-Click advertising if necessary, make up the bulk of what is termed Internet Marketing.

If you would like to discuss a complete Internet Marketing Strategy, Search Engine Optimisation or Promotion for your business simply contact us on 0871 900 8407

Related resources

Internet Consultancy - A web design service from Oyster Web to help you with your Internet strategy.

Search Engine Optimization - Search Engine Optimization are part of our Internet marketing services that help create a successful web presence.