Improving website sales – Does your website smell good?
So you’ve just launched your new website and driven loads of traffic to it, yet conversions and sales are worryingly low. Could the reason be a bad smell?
Hungry for information
Research carried out by Xerox PARC shows we seek out information on the internet in much the same manner that mammals seek food: by following a scent.
Our information-hungry brains try to sniff out cues. If the cues are interesting we’ll continue sniffing; but a lack of scent causes us to look elsewhere. Likewise, if there are too many different scents, we get overwhelmed… much like a big kid in a candy store.
People hunt around for information on the internet, trying to seek visual cues to get them to what they want – they’re goal-orientated. Typically, most hunts start via a search engine and when they land on your site the user expects to pick-up the exact same scent straight away, right in front of them on that same page.
If they can’t find that same sweet smelling scent they’ll hit the back button and move onto another site that smells yummy. If your website is losing traffic on your landing pages perhaps you need to ask yourself ‘are their goals being met?’
What you’re not saying is what matters
Deciding what goes on a page is often the hardest task. You have a colleague insisting she needs the bi-monthly company newsletter at the top of the page, your CEO wants a spinning globe to add some pizzazz, and your manager requiring a signpost taking up 30% of the screen real-estate. Would your hungry-like-the-wolf-user really want to seek these out?
Your user will sniff around for a few seconds before hitting back and searching somewhere else. The main question you need to address is can they immediately see what they want and pick-up the scent?
If they’ve searched for ‘bespoke sausage filler machine’ is it immediately obvious this is what you sell, or is the user distracted by the spinning globe? If you haven’t fulfilled their promise, chances are they’ll leave.
Let’s say our canine friend has discovered you do sell bespoke sausage filler machines, do they know if you’re any good, or whether you’ve sold any before? What about how your machines work or what sets you apart from the competition? How does your user get in touch with you once they’ve discovered you do provide what they’re looking for?
If your website isn’t answering these questions, visitors will be losing the scent and sniffing elsewhere. Not so good. Try answering as many of these questions to have a rosy smelling website.
