Content that Converts

Driving traffic to your site is only the first step

Content marketing is about building trust, authority, and, ultimately, conversions from browsers to clients or customers. We are all familiar with how digital marketing works. An individual needs goods or services, so they pick up their smartphones or laptop and type in keywords that describe their need. Google, or whatever search engine they have chosen, instantly returns what it perceives as the most relevant sites for that particular search string.

If you want your site to rank on the first two pages (and you do, because past that, your site is virtually invisible), you need to have the best content for that particular search. As a business, that is still only part of the battle. You can have excellent SEO practices that land you among the top results, but still fail to make the conversions you want.

Digital and content marketing is not about the number of people who click on the link to your page. The true heart of marketing is about those who stay, engage, and ultimately pay money for your products or services.

Five Ways to Increase Conversions

The following are approaches that top digital marketing firms have established as an effective means of increasing conversions from traffic to a site.

1. Connect with the browser’s need right away. The fundamental step is understanding that this person has landed on your digital doorstep because they have a need, and the content on your site has seconds to convince them that you can help with that need. How do you do this?

Answer a specific question they have — this works exceptionally well on service websites, such as law firms, educational institutions, and health services. The person wants to know a concise, direct, and authoritative answer. Content that avoids “market-speak” yet answers the question will invite the visitor to linger, and the longer they stay, the better the chance you have of conversions.

2. Use emotion in your content. Everyone likes a good story, and at the heart of every good story is the writer’s ability to take the reader on an emotional journey with them. Though content writing should remain professional and authoritative, it should also incite emotion in the browser. Whether you sell custom soaps or provide a medical service, make sure your content connects with readers on an emotional level.

• Show empathy and explain how your service or products can help them solve a problem.
• Do not be afraid of offering a brand story that gives a few personal details about your own journey.

3. Add a sense of urgency. There are many ways that you can subtly foster a sense of urgency to incite visitors to answer a call to action. It shouldn’t be pushy, as that turns off potential customers and sends them scurrying to your competition. However, you can discuss the nature of their problem or need, encourage them to seek a solution, and point out the potential risk of not acting quickly.

4. Keep your content relevant. In trying to draw traffic, far too many websites sacrifice relevancy. Broadening the scope of your content to draw more traffic can harm conversions. Remember, your content has to convince any potential customer that your business offers the solution that they need and that you can do it better, more cost-effectively, or with more expertise than the competition. Overly-broad content can distract from your authority on topics that are most likely to drive conversions.

5. Keep content clear and concise, but never talk down to site visitors. Though there is value in informing your readers, it will only drive conversions if it also offers a benefit to the reader. Introduce your topic in a non-click bait, but engaging title and then explain the content in easy to understand language. The next step is making sure your reader understands how the information affects them or could affect them in the future.

Put yourself in your reader’s shoes, and empathize with their issues. Use a conversational tone to let them know how your company’s products, services, or tools can help them resolve the issue they have. Blogs and landing pages are a great way to connect with visitors and allows you to offer them a no-strings-attached benefit.

Everyone loves a bargain. When you offer high-value content on your site, your visitors are far more likely to believe that you offer something they genuinely need. Instead of wasting time creating bland, generic copy for your website, invest in high-value content.

The math is simple. A thousand visitors a day with two conversions is far less beneficial than three hundred visitors a day and twenty conversions. The quality and value of your content can make a difference in the success or failure of your digital marketing attempts.

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