6 Subtle Lead Generation Turnoffs that Are Costing You
We all know a crappy website when we see it. The pages load slowly. The content looks like it was written by a kindergartener. The flashing banner ads give you seizures. The big onsite issues are easy to spot, but subtle mistakes can cost you big as well.
With lead generation, you’re expecting a lot more out of your visitors than a blogger or a company website. A visitor is expected to trust you, understand instruction and take action. That’s a lot to ask and small factors can make or break the process.
Don’t let valuable visitors leave your site over fixable issues. Run through your pages with a fine tooth comb to ensure maximum earnings.
Destructive Instruction
Everyone thinks what they say makes sense. If they didn’t think that they likely wouldn’t say it. But what sounds simple enough to you might be cryptic to your visitors.
When it comes to lead generation, confusion is enemy number one.
A heat map can be one of the best ways to determine what and where your visitors’ focus is. If the hot points on your page’s heat map look like your toddler’s finger paintings, then your visitors are being paralyzed by poor instruction.
There should be a natural, unmistakable flow to your visitors’ path with all the arrows pointing towards the desired action. Clear out any confusing language, distracting imagery or indecisive direction. We all want our sites to have a unique flare, but don’t do it at the expense of clarity.
Form Deficiency
It is said over and over again, that when you require a form in lead generation, only ask for the minimum amount of information needed. If you don’t need a home address, don’t ask for it. If an email and name is all that is required, leave it at that.
Minimalism is a great starting point for honing in on your form’s quality, but it isn’t the only factor to consider. Positioning, a vertical format versus a horizontal format, the inclusion of a Privacy Policy link, an explanation for the requested information, auto fills and calls to action all have to be considered.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking your form is fine as is. That portion of your site can be the single most important element. Take the time to test, retest and optimize every possible variable that could affect your form’s ability to efficiently convert.
In Symbols We Trust
According to landing page expert, Tim Ash, a person’s first impression is formed in 1/20th of a second with a 90 percent reliance on your preconscious mind. That is not a lot of time to build trust with your visitors, but it’s absolutely imperative that you do.
As a solution to the “instant impression” problem, Ash suggests:
- Making trust symbols readily available
- Displaying client logos in plain site
- Understanding that with trust, more is better
Whether you have an accreditation from the Better Business Bureau or your clients or partners include big name brands, don’t be afraid to brag. You want to be constantly reassuring your visitors that they’re secure while engaging in your site.
A recent study conducted by Blue Global Media revealed that the number one pain point for users was a lack of trust symbols. Regardless of the presence of HTTPS or a lock emblem, the participants were emphatic about seeing logos that depicted security and trust.
Clouded Transparency
The average consumer may not entirely understand the principle of lead generation, so the process of having their information passed along is going to be met with scrutiny. Often site owners, in an attempt to disclose, will use complicated words and titles to describe their role in the process.
However, this approach can be a part of visitor confusion. If they don’t understand your role, why would they hand you their information?
An attempt to be transparent is nice, but actually revealing what your site’s purpose is will go over better with consumers. You don’t have to reveal your earnings, but be straightforward about who you partner with, why a user is better off going through you than going directly to a product provider.
The mechanics aren’t important to consumers; they just want to know what they’re getting into and where the benefit lies. So don’t shield them from the answers.
If you partner with bad credit auto lenders and offer a simplified means of getting loan approval, say it. Don’t try to throw dust in their face by calling yourself the “World’s Fast Auto Loan Search Engine”.
Misguided Redirects
If you’ve been working in lead generation for a while, redirects make perfect sense to you. When a consumer starts heading down a dead-end path, you do your best to funnel them some place where they might convert.
As sensible as this may seem to you, it can really throw your user.
People don’t appreciate feeling like a mouse in a maze. Though you want to make sure your visitors are heading in the right direction, the moves you “force” them to make, have to make sense to the user.
Whether you provide reasoning for the redirect on the landing page or offer a time-sensitive incentive doesn’t really matter. There just needs to be an explanation if you send your visitors somewhere unexpected.
Landing Page Fail
Some of the problems surrounding your site can come from your traffic driving methods. Even if you’re doing everything else right, a failed entry can cost you big.
Anil Batra, director of analytics and strategy at ZeroDash1, did an analysis of bounce rates on six different types of sites:
- eCommerce
- Product Information
- News and Media
- Lead Generation
- Branding
- Other
According to the study, lead generation sites had the highest bounce rates on entry pages with an average rate of 43.61 percent.
Furthermore, PPC campaigns for lead generation sites saw the largest variations. When there was a unique landing page created for the ad, there was a 37.2 percent decrease in the bounce rate.
The users experience starts the second someone hits your site. Don’t trip them up on their first step.
Anyone who says “don’t sweat the small stuff” in lead generation is sending you down a dangerous path. The “small stuff” is everything and can make a world of difference.
