Conversion rate optimisation (CRO) is the process of improving the percentage of website visitors who take desired actions, such as making a purchase or signing up for a newsletter. It's a vital process that can elevate your marketing success and lead to better revenue outcomes, making it a priority for forward-thinking businesses.
Although it might seem like a straightforward process for larger businesses - i.e. invest money into streamlining the customer experience and reap the rewards - it can be daunting for startups to try and do the same.
Why is conversion rate optimisation important for startups?
With more limited resources, startups have to make careful choices about what their money and time is spent on. For newer businesses, converison rate optimisation can be the key difference between scaling or sinking. Every allocation of financial resource can make a large dent in a startup's progress, meaning you have to make your money work much harder for you than a bigger, more established business might.
Rather than throwing money at marketing and social media outreach, your best bet as a startup is to make every action you take more effective, with a greater ROI. For example, if you spend £500 on a Facebook ad campaign but only make one £50 sale as a result, you're not making your money work effectively for you.
Conversion rate optimisation uses the data you generate through your marketing tools - your website, your marketing tools, your social media platforms - and helps you understand which actions generate the most returns.
What happens when you launch your Facebook campaign, for example, can tell you a lot about why you aren't making your money back (and generating more). Are sales not happening because of a lack of interest, or is it because your target audience demographic doesn't use Facebook? Did you launch your ad during the right time or season when your audience needs your product? Do they trust your brand or product, or does your website seem "sketchy"? When they click on your ad, do they get lost on your website instead of buying your product? Have you highlighted the products they're most likely to use, or are they hard to find?
Answering all of these questions and more through CRO can help you to turn every £1 spent into more money earned. Making your customer's journey as simple and easy as possible from first encounter to post-sale can really drive your startup's ability to turn a profit and establish itself.
Our top tips for startups looking to start CRO
Here are our top tips for startups looking to improve their website's conversion rate:
- Focus on a clear value proposition: Make sure it's clear to your audience what your product or service does and how it can benefit them. This can help to increase the chances that they will take the desired action.
- Simplify the checkout process: The checkout process is a critical step in the conversion funnel, and any obstacles or friction can cause your audience to abandon their purchase. Make it as easy as possible for customers to complete a purchase by reducing the number of steps they need to take (customer effort) and providing clear instructions and signposts.
- Use social proof: Showcasing customer reviews, testimonials, and social media followers can help to build trust and increase conversions. When your target audience see that others are happy with your product or service, they are more likely to feel confident in their decision to make a purchase or take the desired action.
- Utilise personalized recommendations: Personalised recommendations can help to increase conversions by showing your audience products or services that are tailored to their interests and needs. You can use tools such as Google Analytics and machine learning algorithms to create personalised recommendations for your visitors.
In addition to these tips, startups need to remember that they often have a smaller pool of data to work with when it comes to CRO. As a result, it's often more important for startups to prioritise CRO efforts than larger businesses that might have brand recognition or larger margins to work with.
Startups may also need to rely more on experimentation to find what works for their audience and be flexible and open to changing their strategy. We highly recommend using an iterative approach to your website and marketing to really make your money go further.
Get in touch with us if you have any questions, and you can always book a free consultation with us if you'd like specific help.