Website Tips to Boost Leads & Sales

Your company’s business website has the potential to generate leads and boost sales. It can achieve this through strategic design, content, functionality, and targeted marketing tactics. The multinational companies are already doing it. However, did you know there are also website tips for small business owners to increase leads and sales with their websites? Best of all, it may only take some optimization and doesn't have to cost a fortune! Here is what this looks like.

First Things First: What is a Lead?

A lead is a potential customer who is not yet ready to decide. This is usually the case when they initially become aware of your company, product, or service. A lead is a shopper who has a need and finds that your product or service could fill it. A lead can even be a shopper on the cusp of buying.

It is your website’s job to meet the customer where they are in the sales process and guide them through the rest of the buyer’s journey. As a small business, brand visibility or recognition may not be on your side. Therefore, it is vital to provide both to website newcomers and potential customers. So, how do we get the leads to take action?

CTAs Are Excellent Lead Generation Strategies for Companies of All Sizes

Nothing generates leads more effectively than telling customers what you want them to do. In website optimization, we refer to this as a call-to-action (CTA). It is surprising how many businesses are falling short in this area. Interestingly, you can place CTAs anywhere on your site.

Clear CTAs include clickable buttons stating “Schedule a call,” “Get a free quote,” or “Download Our Free Guide.” Notice how the action words are clear and describe an action the customer can take on the website. We recommend placing CTAs in blogs, at the top of web pages, and throughout various subjects.

How to Persuade the Customer to Follow the CTA

We have already discussed that CTAs must be clear and concise. But what does it take for the customer to act?

• Lead capture forms. You frequently see them as pop-ups, but you might also place them on landing pages and at the ends of blog posts. Lead capture forms are brief and only request the customer’s name, email, and phone number occasionally.
• Lead Magnets. A lead magnet is a free resource in exchange for contact information. Examples include e-books, templates, webinar access, and discount codes for first-time purchases. Customers appreciate receiving something for free, and providing a name and email address seems like a small price to pay.
• AI. Yes, artificial intelligence doesn’t have to be a bad thing. You might opt for chatbots. Program them to qualify leads with screening questions and then base your real-time engagement on the answers.
• Convincing blogs. Blogs travel far. They originate on your website, and you then share them across all the social media platforms on which you are active. And, if your content is either entertaining or helpful, you may see that social media users engage with it and share it. Consider each blog an opportunity to convince a shopper to become a buyer.

Typically, it is advisable to place relevant links on high-traffic pages. For example, if your social media strategy includes Facebook Reels growth and is doing well, you have an excellent location for putting up forms. If you have the marketing budget for paid ads, these are also the pages and sites where you would place them. (However, you do not have to rely on paid ads if you get plenty of traffic already.)

How is your Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?

You have clear calls to action and lead magnets in place. But do your customers see them? This is rooted in effective SEO, which attracts organic traffic from people actively searching for your products, services, or free offers. Remember that optimizing landing pages for high-intent keywords is not a one-time action. Because search patterns and engine algorithms change, you may need to update SEO on landing pages and other website areas.

What Does it Take to Boost Sales?

When qualified leads are coming in, it is time to move them through the sales funnel to a buying decision. Several website tips are for small business owners to increase leads and sales. For one thing, we need to revisit optimization. Are your product pages set up to drive conversions?

Optimization here refers to creating high-quality images, detailed product descriptions, positive customer reviews, and comparison charts, if applicable. Some businesses succeed by creating a sense of urgency by mentioning low inventory levels. Consider incorporating trust signals such as warranties or guarantees.

Excellent E-commerce Website Functionality

How are your loading times? Customers don’t want to wait. Do you have fast, intuitive shopping carts? Most importantly, are you incorporating effective upsell and cross-sell tactics at checkout? These are statements like “You might also like…” and “Customers also bought…” Combine them with images of the other products and links to access them.

Another element of having an excellent e-commerce website is complete mobile optimization. Because so many customers are now making buying decisions while on the go, you need a mobile-responsive site. Part and parcel of this experience are fast load times. Meet the customer when buying, and make the sale quick and easy.

Using Customer Testimonials and Video Marketing to Your Advantage

Another way to boost sales is to incorporate social proof as a means of building trust. The would-be customer sees others just like them, who are happy about their buying decision. Focus on concise customer testimonials highlighting one or more key product or service advantages. Add video testimonials, success stories, or customer-created videos that showcase alternative uses for your products. Customers appreciate versatility.

Working With an Influencer

There are more and more of them around. As a result, you can identify an influencer perfect for your niche, business philosophy, and target audience. You can connect with the influencer directly or research their affiliate structures and resume online. Start small with just one influencer. The goal here is to create a long-term relationship with their audience. Of course, before you decide to find leads in this way, it is crucial to have your website optimized for any increase in traffic you may be getting.

How Do You Know It’s Working?

You may feel good about following some of these website tips for small business owners to increase leads and sales. However, it is critical to have complex data to show how things are going and where areas are for improvement.

For example, Google Analytics is an excellent tool for determining where your website visitors go when they visit. It also shows you where visitors drop off, which pages perform best, and which your customers do not spend much time on. Having this data makes it possible to improve CTAs, change content, and review your linking flow.

Some Troubleshooting for Underperforming Sales Sites

• SEO. If you're not getting enough traffic, your SEO is likely lacking. Customers are not finding your website. Or, if they do find it, they do not see the needed products or services quickly. Updating SEO can make a world of difference.
• Lead generation. Websites that fail to generate leads effectively may require updates. Examples include call-to-action placement, best practices for landing pages, and concise social proof testimonials. If you have not already done so, apply A/B test headline variations. Make some tweaks to capture website visitors' interest in what you are selling.
• Lead captures. The CTA leads the website visitor to the lead capture forms. Are they too long or complicated? Shoppers do not want to give out a lot of information. They may be willing to do so once they are customers. However, if your lead capture is too intrusive, you will lose the lead. Moreover, what you offer the shopper in exchange for the information must be of value. A shopper may not care about an email subscription now; however, they may be interested in a free trial.
• Contact. Email marketing can become a vital component of your sales growth efforts. However, to achieve this goal, you must incorporate effective lead nurturing into your email campaigns. Customer relationship management (CRM) software is an excellent tool for this.
  

A Word for Hyper-Local Businesses

The hyper-local business serves customers in the immediate area. Examples include service providers like manicurists, house cleaners, and landscapers. The previously mentioned sales and lead generation strategies for the hyper-local business owner still apply. However, we recommend adding another strategy: having customers help with lead generation.

These may be discount offers for customers who bring new shoppers to the business. You may want to reward a customer for every new shopper who follows one of your CTAs. Giving the original customer 20% off on their next purchase is not uncommon. You also see big brands doing it, but for a hyper-local company, it is essential.

What Happens If You Do Nothing?

It is unlikely that you will go out of business. However, you will miss out on business growth opportunities. While your happy customers may become brand ambassadors simply because they love your product, service, or business, your growth will be stunted.

Is Your Website Ready for New Leads and Sales?

Are you satisfied with the website traffic you receive? While DIY SEO tools may have served you well so far, updating your website may be necessary for the next stage of your company’s growth. While it seems like a tall order to handle this all by yourself, we would like to help.

Schedule a call today!