How To Structure Your Web Site Content To Improve Your Sales Conversion Rates

“Content is king.” All of the most successful (and well ranked) Web Masters tell us the same thing… you have to offer your visitors quality information. It builds your credibility, and the search engines eat it up, resulting in higher rankings for your site.

What exactly constitutes quality content, though? A common mistake made by new Web Masters is to include all of their service offerings or ‘products’ on one page. Sometimes there is such a long list of available items, that the viewer is forced to leave the site out of confusion before they even have a handle on what it is that you actually have to offer.

Finding the right balance between ‘not enough information’ (NEI), and ‘too much information’ (TMI) is sometimes the most challenging aspect of building your Web presence. Use the checklist below to find your ‘content balance’.

Your Site Suffers From “TMI” when:

1. Your viewer has to scroll more than four times to reach the bottom of your page. Be considerate of your visitor’s download time, and break your content into manageable bites.

2. There is no consistent theme. Define your main purpose, and stick to it! Consider using different domain names for unrelated topics. The more focused your Web site is on one purpose, the better your search engine rankings will be, and your visitors will be more likely to find what they’re looking for.

3. Your navigation bar looks more like a directory than a ‘roadmap’ to your content. The navigation on your site is perhaps the most important element of all.

• Break your content into ‘sections’, and include these sections in your navigation.

• For better search engine ranking, use text links that include your primary key word terms.

• Commit one specific page location to navigation, and keep it consistent throughout your site. Your visitor will expect to find the navigation in the same place they found it the first time!

• Locate your navigation links within the first fold of your page, so your viewers don’t have to go looking for it. (The first fold of your page is what the viewer sees upon entering your site… without having to scroll.)

Your Site Suffers From “NEI” when:

1. You find yourself typing the words, “For more Information, mail me here…”. You’re lucky your visitor read that far down on your page, now you expect them to mail you for the information they thought they were going to get when they entered your site?

Remember, it’s our job to make everything as easy for our visitors as we can. If you have ‘sensitive’ or ‘valuable’ information to share, consider developing a password protected directory on your site that only members have access to.

This could very well become a source of ‘passive income’ for you, but at the very least, it gives your visitor a way to access the information they were looking for. Your competitors are only a click away; don’t send YOUR visitors looking for them.

2. You wouldn’t buy something out of a catalogue if there was no product description, right? Don’t expect your Web site visitors to do so then!

If you offer a service or product, describe it in full, and whenever possible, provide an example of your work, or a graphical representation of your product. (A combination of both works best.)

Utilize client testimonials to help build credibility and trust. Offer samples as a show of confidence. This is your sales presentation… so, present!

3. Your page is filled with ‘industry jargon’. Your visitor may not be familiar with the terms you use as everyday language. Make sure you use ordinary language to describe your product or service. If you deal with terms less commonly known, consider a site ‘glossary’ or search function.

4. You’re missing the following pages on your site: contact, about, privacy, and terms of use. Why? Well, the educated and well informed consumers LOOK for this information whenever they are considering giving out their precious personal information (especially if they’re readers of mine).

Put yourself in your visitor’s shoes… would you give your credit card info, or even your email address for that matter… to a company that didn’t even have the courtesy of allowing you to contact them? Besides, here in the USA, the FTC says you have to include these items. Protect yourself from the beginning.

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Of course, finding the best content is simply a matter of asking yourself one question; does this content in some way direct my visitor to take action or build credibility for me in their minds? If your answer is yes, then include it within the applicable category within your navigation.

If you answered ‘no’, re-visit your Web site’s purpose. With your clearly defined purpose in mind, you will be better able to choose relevant, quality content.

The bottom line is … if your sales conversions are low in comparison to the traffic your site is receiving, you may just need to balance, and present your content differently. The steps outlines here should give you a head start in tweaking your site to sales conversion success!

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About The Author: Ginger Geracitano offers her experience as a Web Designer and Business & Marketing Coach through her E-Zine, The Portal To Success. Subscribers receive tips, strategies, and her product reviews every week.

Since I review business opportunities and internet gurus all day for a living, you can guess I know which ones work and which ones don't. Click here to see how I make my money.