If you own a business then you probably have an inkling that for many buyers, a simple price and a list of features isn’t very compelling. You could get flashy and have really catchy graphics but that probably wouldn’t make a whole lot of difference either.
So what is the trick to converting browsers to buyers?
There’s no trick really – many of the same concepts in offline sales apply in online sales. Probably the biggest difference is that when they come into your business or shop they can immediately get a good idea of how you operate. They can talk to you face to face and decide whether you are someone they want to do business with – someone they can trust.
Online marketers have been teaching the importance of trust ever since businesses started selling online, but without that face to face meeting you need to work a little differently and perhaps a little harder to earn the trust of your website visitors.
There are several factors that can contribute to how quickly a stranger will trust someone but the most important relates to how well you know your business. If you are regularly providing accurate, useful information on your website then this will have a major bearing on whether your website visitors trust you or not.
I often advise business owners to think about what attracts them to certain websites. The answer is always the same – good, relevant information. As an example, let’s if you are looking for a new tax accountant. You visit five sites. All of the websites you visit are well laid out and presented, but one of those websites has a section on tax tips for small business. You read through that section and realise you could have been claiming some tax benefits that you weren’t aware of. Who are you going to trust? Those tips are going to immediately identify that tax accountant as an expert – they’ve already saved you some money and you haven’t even spoken to them yet!
So you can see how that one additional section on a website can make it stand out above the others as an ‘authority site’. That’s what trust is all about and providing relevant, useful information can position your business as the ‘authority’.
Another way to earn trust is with a newsletter. Quite often your potential customers won’t buy from you straight away. I’m sure you get as many catalog in your mailbox each week as I do and you don’t go out and buy something in every catalog. You probably do browse through them sometimes though and see some things in there that you might like to purchase in the future. When the time comes that you want to make that purchase you are more likely to visit the store that has been sending catalogs than one that you know nothing about.
With a newsletter you can provide information, tips and most importantly – a connection – with many potential new customers. Just as that good information on your website can attract new customers, a newsletter with up to date information will help position your business as the local experts.
Again, I would say that you should think about any email newsletters that you subscribe to. Why did you subscribe initially and why have you stayed on those mailing lists? What information can your business provide that would help build you a large and loyal mailing list?
If you currently have a website ‘because everyone has one’ then you need to change the way you see your website. It is a powerful marketing tool if you take the time to market it properly.
Tags: conversions, mailing list, newsletter