Your website may be getting plenty of traffic, but does it do a good job converting that traffic into interested visitors who go on to deliver results? Here are some guidelines to help you get there.

  • Identify with your ideal prospect by showing them that you understand their problem or pain.
  • Make allowances for the different ways that web visitors have in making decisions, by understanding their various approaches and personalities.
  • Develop personas that reflect the attitudes and behaviors of each of your audiences, so you can address each one specifically.
  • Create content that leads each persona down a path to solve a problem as far as he/she wants to go.

Rather than guessing about your ideal prospect, take a survey of your existing customers to learn what will increase conversion rates:

  • What motivated them to buy?
  • How do they make decisions about buying?
  • What expectations did they have at the time they bought?
  • How did they like the experience they had with your company?
  • What suggestions do they have?

What motivated customers to buy?

Motivation to buy is directly related to a specific problem, desire, frustration or pain that your customer is experiencing. If your web visitor does not have a problem that you hold the solution for, then he/she is not even a prospect – it’s that simple.

Your solution may solve many different problems, both real and perceived. Each problem you can solve represents a target audience who is experiencing that particular problem. When you clearly identify the problems, desires, frustrations or pains that your business solves or satisfies, you are also identifying one target audience’s motivation to buy.

How did customers make the decision to buy?

How your target audience prefers to receive information to make a buying decision may be very different from the way your company presents it. The questions a prospect asks often fit their personality:

  • What challenges and options can you show me that demonstrate your solution to my problem?
  • Why is your solution best? (Show me credibility.)
  • How does your solution solve my problem? (Show me hard evidence.)
  • Who has used your solution to solve my problem? (Show me testimonials and incentives.)

What expectations did customers have at the time they bought?

Knowing what your existing customers were expecting when they bought your solution can reveal hidden niche opportunities or communication problems. How you address the opportunity or clarify the problem is up to you, but it brings you one step closer to getting in the minds of your customers.

Was the customer experience good or bad?

Don’t let your systems and processes produce question marks for your customer. With one of my clients, the customer survey revealed a shopping cart issue that was easy to solve, and no one could have known about it until a customer explained his bad experience. A customer’s good or bad experience can impact any area of your business, but it’s often difficult to see it from your side of the relationship.

What suggestions do your customers have?

Customers like to be rewarded for contributing valuable information to your business, so reward them and listen up. Customers know more about marketing and how they want to be treated than you may be giving them credit for.

Knowing your ideal prospect well enough to resonate with them at those critical moments along the buyers journey is the first step to naturally increase conversion rates.

Contact us, we’re happy to provide a complimentary consultation.


Tom Shivers
Tom Shivers

I'm a ecommerce SEO consultant and President of Capture Commerce. I've managed digital marketing campaigns for scores of clients since 2000 and found that every business is unique with its own challenges and opportunities. When I see that I have contributed to the success of a business by helping them grow, it makes me feel awesome! That’s the coolest thing and I’m so thankful for the opportunity to do this.