10 Website Changes That Reduce Your Conversions Most

Welcome back to the AwesomeWeb series!

In our last post we shared 10 ways to improve team productivity. Follow these tips if you want to get more done in your online business.

This week we’re talking about increasing conversions.

All great marketers focus on conversions. Why? Because it makes them more money.

But it’s not always possible to predict the way users will respond to your updates.

We’ve all made changes that really hurt our conversions, rather than improve them, and this week I asked the group which changes hurt conversions most.

Some will surprise you…

Table of Contents

10 Website Changes That Reduced Our Conversions Most:

#1. Too Many Pricing Choices

Contributed by Tom Lambert

Don’t give visitors too many pricing choices. Every additional pricing option adds a new layer of complexity to the decision making process.

For example, if you have 3 software packages – bronze, silver, and gold, I’m going to have to do a lot more thinking about which is most suitable for me, as opposed to if you had only one option. Always reduce the number of options on your pages, especially landing pages, to the least amount possible.

In some cases it might be necessary to offer different packages or tiers but if you currently have more than one price for your product or service try testing this.

#2. Removing The “Start Here” Page

Contributed By David Aston

If you don’t currently offer a “Start Here” page on your website, than you’re missing out. The “start here” page is MASSIVELY under valued.

Over the last decade, web surfers have become used to bold call-to-actions. So much so, that it’s an easy behavioral pattern to accommodate and leverage for an improved experience and increased conversions.

If you offer a “Start Here” opt-in page on your website, make sure you provide a TON of value straight away as this is an instant trust builder and a perfect opportunity to get people into your funnel.

#3. Having Video On The Sales Page

Contributed by Arielle Hall

We split-tested our sales page and believe it or not, got a lower conversion rate on the sales page with video. Long-form sales page + video = no bueno for us. Not too sure about why, but my guess is the video was distracting and people hopped off after viewing it.

#4. Not Writing Consistently

Contributed By Nick Tart

I have two blogs that I started in 2008 and 2011. In their prime, they had 20-30K unique visitors per month. I’d receive 5-10 subscribers a day, dozens of comments on every post, and people seemed to appreciate my work.

Over time my priorities have changed. They still get 10-15K unique visitors per month and a couple subscribers per day, but the audience is disengaged.

By not writing regularly, my search rankings have fallen, the social shares have all but stopped, and people don’t come back as often. Not only am I getting less traffic, but the people who come don’t do anything when they’re there.

Check out the 11 ways to dramatically boost user engagement.

#5. Forgetting To Talk About Benefits.

Contributed By Brian Moran

Whenever we focus more on what’s inside our products, and less about how it will help the customer, conversions always drop. It’s an easy mistake to make so we always have to catch ourselves.

#6. Removing PopUp Domination

Contributed by Dainis Graveris

Well, Michael will like this response – whenever I remove my PopUp Domination plugin, conversions seriously drop.

The more emails you get on your list, the more chances you will have to succeed in this online business world.

#7. Having A Delayed Optin Form On A Landing Page With Video

Contributed by Dmitriy Koslov

Putting a delayed optin form on a landing page with a video. This might work for buy buttons, but for us has proven to not work for optin pages at all and have a negative effect on conversions.

#8. Not Using A Responsive Theme

Contributed by Josh Dunlop

I would say that the main thing that reduced conversions for me was switching to a theme that wasn’t mobile responsive, rather than a theme that was.

Millions of people are viewing billions of pages online daily via smartphones… They’re also buying a ton – Don’t miss out on this traffic because of an unresponsive theme. You can find thousands of responsive themes starting at only 3 dollars from ThemeForest.

#9. Changing Headlines When You Don’t Need To

Contributed by Jock Purtle

We changed the headline on one of our affiliate websites and the conversion rate dropped from 2.12% to 1.34%. That’s a lot of money in the long run.

Here are 10 headlines that got us 10 million visitors.

#10. Not Having Clarity, Proof, and Usability

Contributed by Marj Galangco

This question is a bit tricky, because test results really need to be evaluated in context. But as a rule of thumb when elements like clarity, proof, and usability are reduced, so does conversion.

This is actually important to take note of, especially for those who are planning to (or in the process of) redesigning their websites. There’s nothing wrong with wanting a new website that looks sleek and avant garde, but make sure you’re not sacrificing the more important elements that would affect your response rates.

About me:

My name is Lissa Anderson I am a full time SEO consultant. I've been doing freelancing,web development,web designing & internet marketing stuff for more than 8 years. Now I am affiliate with one of the world’s largest online advertising company.
I´m offering SEO and SocialMedia Services here on my website too.