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Starhugger -> RE: "conversion" rates ? (9/4/2005 16:36:43)
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I don't know what kind of conversion rates would be "typical" for the cake and candy business, but I do know that your conversion rates will vary significantly depending on how well you target your audience. I suspect you might get a better conversion rate if you focused a bit more on this.
How well calibrated are your web pages are to keywords that have significantly lower supply compared to demand? This can bring you interested visitors, which is more likely to give you a higher conversion rate. Services like Wordtracker and the Overture Suggestion Tool can help with this. As long as the supply is much lower than the demand, it almost doesn't matter how high the demand is because you'll be virtually guaranteed to show up in a search for those keywords. And it will be people who are actually interested in those keywords, and therefore in your products.
Then, when you've got them on your site, focus on "pre-selling" them, which essentially means you chat them up and establish rapport. Talk a bit about your craft, how to tell good from bad cake and candy (or whatever), different kinds of cake and candy -- that kind of thing. You could create different pages aimed at certain keywords and concepts that get a lot of hits. Once you've got them relaxed and interested, you can recommend a product and they're going to be much more open to the idea.
I am seeing a lot of sites that tell people how to do what they do (e.g., how to make candy or how to decorate a cake). Although this might sound counterproductive, it can actually help your sales. You can suggest (nicely) that if they don't want to go to all that trouble, your products can be purchased. Helping them know how to do what you do can not only win points with your audience (which might bring them back in the future or they might refer others to your site), but it also helps them understand what goes into making your products and they'll appreciate your hard work more (and perhaps accept your prices easier too).
When I look at your site, I mostly see inventory lists. I don't see any pre-selling or establishing a rapport with the viewer. I see a bit of text below the list of links, but it's confusing (to me anyway) because of too many colours and different font sizes. I think people become more open minded when they feel they're dealing with a person, not just a catalogue.
What do you offer that distinguishes you from other sites like yours? Better prices? Variety? Unique products? Excellent quality? Support? I think it would help to establish more rapport with your viewer before you can assume they're interested in your products enough to check them out further. Think of it like greeting them at the door of your home and showing them around. Talk about what makes your products, pages, services, etc. special. What do you take pride in? Share that pride with the viewer. Get them enthused.
Figure out what kinds of people you're aiming your site and products at, and have at least an introduction on the front page that speaks to them, as well as anyone else who finds your site. If you're selling to do-it-yourselfers, which you seem to be, you might put up pictures of what some of your customers have done, which could encourage the viewer go "Wow, I can do that too!" and give them more confidence.
Those would be my suggestions. [:)] Best of luck with it! I hope this helps a bit.
Starhugger
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