Every business struggles with converting leads into customers to a certain extent.
And unless you’re the exception to the rule, we want to explain why (and shake your hand).
In this two-part series, we’ll discuss some common problems businesses experience when trying to convert customers, as well as the strategies for boosting and maintaining conversion rates.
In Part 1, we’ll be focusing on consumer touchpoints, which we’re defining as any contact a consumer has with your business or brand.
The Magic Touch
You’re most likely familiar with the common touchpoints: Your actual brand, social media presence, your advertising and even your website content.
Still, conversions may elude you, even if you’re on top of maintaining these, leading to the universal ¯_(ツ)_/¯
As it turns out, there are a whole lot of touchpoints on the “hi to buy” journey, and a single slip up at any of these steps can be an instant turnoff for potential clients
These touchpoints can be anything from old signage to getting directions to your business from Google.
Individually these irksome things may seem minor, but if there are a lot of them, they tend to snowball into an infuriating mess. The last word you want people using to describe your business is “annoying”!
But have no fear! Here are some pro tips to help you assess and fix some of the most common touchpoint issues – turning customer chagrin into a customer win.
Can You Hear Me Now?
We’ve all been there: Calling a customer support line only to come away with a bad taste in your mouth and a rising temper.
Your phone line is a crucial point of contact between a consumer and your business. Whether they need more information or wish to engage your services, a real hang-up here can lead people to tune out your business.
People want friendly, reliable customer support. But they don’t always get it. Luckily, there’s an easy way to check under the hood from time to time to ensure a smooth-running operation.
Have someone call in and pose as a potential customer. If they report problems, you’ll need to work with your team to ensure they reflect the quality your business represents.
We know this sounds a whole lot like an episode of Undercover Boss. But keeping on top of your customer service is a must if you want to stay on top of the conversion game.
Take the Short Road Home
In the age of connectivity, GPS has become an essential part of our day-to-day navigation needs.
But what if the location we enter into Google Maps doesn’t have a clear route to it?
If you don’t stay up to date on getting people to your door, you’re liable to end up as lost as your customers when trying to figure out where they’ve all gone.
Take time every once in a while to look up these things, and correct as needed. Keeping your customers’ commute in mind will help ensure that when it comes to conversion, you’re always in the driver’s seat.
Being a Social (Media) Butterfly
Ok, we’ll be the first to admit that not every company can operate a social media account like Wendy’s. Just because you aren’t roasting the competition, however, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t attempt to engage with customers.
Social media offers an unprecedented opportunity to receive and respond to consumer feedback.
As one of the few opportunities for two-way interaction between your brand and your customer base, you can’t afford to skimp on devoting resources to a robust presence on social media. You can even use social media to drive consumers into other touchpoints you highlight.
We often encounter businesses that will throw up an account with consumer comments disabled and just a post or two containing a short company bio with a link to their business’ website. If you aren’t interacting with your customers, you’re missing the whole “social” part of “social media.” If ever there was a justification for a facepalm, it would be this right here. (If your company did a good job of using social media, you’d know what we’re talking about.)
Ignoring a touchpoint as important as this tells your customers you’re out of touch.
Oh, What a Tangled Web We Weave
If you guessed this next section has something to do with websites, you’re absolutely right! Specifically, we’re talking about your website.
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: Your website is your brand.
Your brand itself is THE most important touchpoint a consumer has. So imagine being a frustrated consumer trying to figure out how to navigate through a clutter of poorly placed tabs and broken links. Yikes!
A lot of businesses build spiffy websites meant to showcase their company’s capabilities. But if you sacrifice user-friendliness for that cool new look, you might be paying for more than just a clever URL.
If customers have trouble clicking through your webpages, you can be sure they will take their surfing (and their business) somewhere else.
We understand how difficult it is to design a webpage that really works for a business. It can take time and resources your business may not have. But because – say it with me – your website is your brand, it’s a project well worth it!
Lucky for you, Stealth has years of experience in designing websites that are both stylish and functional.
But wait! There’s more! Stealth offers customer journey mapping to help you figure out ALL of the touchpoints where your business could stand to improve, from big to small.
If you want to find out more, drop us a line today. And stay tuned for Part 2 of our Conversion series where we’ll be discussing creative ways to raise the roof on conversion rate
