Strategies for businesses to drive more traffic and increase online visibility
A good marketing funnel will drive conversions and revenue.
The best SEO agencies know that SEO is about conversions and not just traffic.
Did you know 93% of online experiences begin with a search engine? That's why SEO is so critical for businesses that want to succeed online. But getting traffic to your website isn't enough – you need to convert visitors into customers.
In this article, we'll explore some proven strategies for improving your SEO conversions. From website design to content optimisation, landing pages to user feedback, we'll give you the tools to turn your website into a powerful conversion machine.
1. Understanding SEO conversions
SEO conversion definition
SEO (search engine optimisation) conversions are actions that website visitors take that result in a desired outcome for the website owner. These outcomes could be anything from making a purchase to filling out a form. Essentially, any action that moves the visitor closer to becoming a customer can be considered an SEO conversion.
There are many types of SEO conversions. Some common examples include:
- Purchases made on an eCommerce site
- Contact form submissions
- Newsletter sign-ups
- Phone calls to a business
- Clicks on a specific button or link
Getting noticed in SERPs
Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) are the pages that appear after a user enters a search query in search engines such as Google or Bing. SEO aims to optimise a website's content and structure to improve search engine results page rankings resulting in more organic traffic to the site.
However, simply driving web traffic to a website is not enough. Improving conversions requires on and off-page SEO improvements to ensure that the traffic being driven to the website is of high quality and that the user experience (UX) once on the site is seamless to improve the likelihood of the desired action.
By optimising for SEO conversions, businesses can improve their chances of not only attracting high-quality traffic to their site but also converting that traffic into leads and customers.
Conversion and search intent
Search intent refers to the reason behind a user's search query, and it can be classified into four main categories:
- Informational
- Navigational
- Transactional
- Commercial
By understanding the search intent behind specific keywords, businesses can tailor their content and website to better match the user's needs and improve their chances of conversion.
For example, a user searching for "best running shoes for women" likely has transactional intent and is looking to make a purchase, while a user searching for "how to train for a 5k" likely has informational intent and is looking for tips and advice.
By providing content and products that align with search intent, businesses can increase their relevance and improve their site’s conversion rate.
2. Sales funnels and conversion rates: How to make it work for your business
A look at the TOFU, MOFU, BOFU marketing funnel example.
Understanding the sales conversion funnel is crucial, but it's equally important to know how to apply this knowledge to your digital marketing strategy.
One effective approach is to create content tailored to each stage of the sales funnel.
1. Awareness stage
Create blog posts, infographics, and social media content introducing their brand and products/services to potential customers.
2. Interest stage
Provide more detailed information about their products/services, such as comparison guides and product reviews, to help potential customers make informed decisions.
3. Consideration stage
Use email marketing and retargeting ads to remind potential customers of their products/services and offer special promotions or discounts.
4. Purchase stage
Make it easy for customers to complete the purchase process with clear calls-to-action and a streamlined checkout process.
By creating targeted content for each stage of the sales funnel, businesses can guide potential customers towards making a purchase and improve their conversion rates.
3. Measuring SEO conversions
Tracking SEO conversions is important because it allows businesses to see which strategies are working and which are not to help them to achieve SEO success. You can measure SEO conversions using tools like Google Analytics.
- Click-through rates measure the percentage of users who click on a specific link.
- Conversion rates measure the percentage of users who complete a specific action on your web pages.
- Bounce rates measure the percentage of users leaving the website after visiting only one page.
If a business uses both SEO and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, they can compare their PPC ads' conversion rates to that of their SEO efforts. This can help determine which strategy is more effective and where they should focus their overall marketing efforts.
Calculate conversion rate
To calculate your conversion rate, apply the following equation:
Conversion Rate = (Number of Conversions / Total Number of Visitors) x 100%
For example, if your website had 1000 visitors and 30 made a purchase, your website’s conversion rate would be 3%.
According to a recent study by Wordstream, the average eCommerce conversion rate for websites is around 3.65%. Still, it’s interesting to note that the top 25% interviewed convert at a rate of 5.31% or higher. Prioritising SEO conversion efforts can really pay off if you put the effort into understanding your target audience and how users engage with your website.
4. Factors affecting SEO conversions
Several factors can impact SEO conversions, including:
- Website design
- User experience (UX)
- Site speed
- Content quality and relevance
- Keyword optimisation
- Backlinks
You probably already know visitors are more likely to leave without converting if a website is poorly designed, difficult to navigate, or takes too long to load. You have doubtless experienced this yourself when seeking out products or services online! The flip side is, of course, when you provide visitors with a website that is user-friendly, easy to navigate, and loads quickly, they are far more likely to stay and convert.
Content quality and relevance are two of the most important factors influencing SEO conversions. If a website provides valuable, high-quality content relevant to its target audience, visitors are more likely to engage with it and convert. Similarly, keyword optimisation and building high-quality backlinks can improve SEO conversions by boosting the website's search results rankings and visibility.
Website loading speed is another crucial factor that can impact your conversion rate. According to Google, the probability of bounce increases by 32% as page load time goes from one to three seconds! Using tools such as Google's PageSpeed Insights is a great idea to help identify and fix issues that can slow down the website's loading speed.
A marketing professional carefully planning out an effective SEO strategy.
5: Strategies for improving SEO conversions
Now that we better understand what affects SEO conversions, let's discuss some strategies you can use to improve conversion rates on your website.
Improve website design
As mentioned earlier, website design is crucial to SEO conversions. A well-designed website with easy navigation, an intuitive layout, and clear calls-to-action can significantly improve your conversion rates. Businesses should focus on creating a user-friendly website optimised for desktop and mobile devices.
Optimise content for SEO
High-quality, relevant content will go a long way towards improving SEO conversions. Focus on creating content that addresses their target audience's pain points and provides valuable solutions.
Keyword research can help businesses identify the relevant search terms that their target audience uses, and optimising content around these long tail keywords can help improve their rankings and conversions.
Incorporate Google Ads
Utilising Google Ads provides an effective strategy for targeting relevant keywords, locations, and demographics, helping businesses reach their desired audience more efficiently. PPC advertising also complements SEO efforts by driving more qualified leads to landing pages and providing keyword data to feed through to your SEO strategy.
Google Ads can help businesses improve conversion rates and expand their reach and customer base. Planning and executing a well-structured Google Ads campaign that aligns with your SEO strategy to achieve optimal results is crucial.
Build high-quality backlinks
Building high-quality backlinks can help improve a website's domain authority (DA), improving its rankings in SERPs and SEO conversions. Businesses should focus on building backlinks from authoritative websites in their industry, using tactics such as guest blog articles, broken link building, and social media promotion.
Use landing pages
Landing pages are designed to drive conversions and can be an effective way to increase your SEO conversion rates. Landing pages should be optimised for specific keywords and offer a clear call-to-action, such as filling out a form or making a purchase. By directing traffic to a relevant landing page, businesses can improve their chances of converting visitors into customers.
Optimise page speed
Page loading speed is a crucial factor in SEO conversions. A slow-loading web page can lead to a poor user experience and high bounce rates. Businesses should focus on optimising their website's loading speed by reducing image sizes, using caching tools, and minimising the use of large files.
In a 2019 Unbounce survey, almost 70% of consumers agreed that page loading speed impacts their willingness to buy from online stores. And, despite the appeal of all the “bells and whistles”, of all the people surveyed, 50% said they would sacrifice animation and video for faster load times.
Consider CRO
You can vastly improve your SEO conversion rate with professional conversion rate optimisation (CRO) services. The CRO process involves analysing website performance data, such as click-through and bounce rates, and making data-driven changes to elements within the customer journey to improve conversion rates.
CRO services typically use A/B testing, website usability analysis, and heat maps to determine precise measurements and test possible solutions.
Explore user feedback
Gathering user feedback through surveys, customer testimonials or feedback forms can provide valuable insights into what users like or dislike about your website.
By understanding your user's needs and preferences, businesses can better identify areas for improvement and make changes that increase conversions.
Exploring user feedback & customer sentiment with analytics tools.
Set up rank tracking
Rank tracking involves monitoring your website's position in search engine results pages (SERPs) for specific keywords. By tracking your rankings, you can identify opportunities to improve your website's visibility and increase conversions. Tools like SEMrush can help you monitor your rankings and make data-driven decisions to optimise your website for better SEO performance.
Ready to give your SEO conversions a boost?
Get a 90-minute strategy session giving you a clear plan for business growth.
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Find an SEO agency near you
Naturally, we recommend the best of the best (EngineRoom). For each city, view EngineRoom SEO services near you:
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SEO conversions are crucial for businesses looking to drive more traffic, leads, and sales from their website. Understanding the factors that affect SEO conversions and implementing effective strategies to improve them is crucial in today's competitive digital landscape.
