Selling via the web is like speed dating – if you don’t make an instant connection, prospects will more than likely move on to someone else. 

Here are four innovative ways top companies maintain their edge by creating the type of online buying experience that keeps customers coming back again and again:

1. Make it as easy as possible for visitors to find what they need. Be sure to include a “search” function, as well as tabs for every type of product or service you offer. Pay attention to frequent “search” terms so you can see if prospects use the same words or phrases to describe a product as you do. Try to include those words in the “tags” or descriptions of products, so prospects can find what they need.
2. Monitor the competition. Use Google Analytics to determine which competitors’ websites get the most online traffic. Then do a little more research to determine what their web strategy is and how you can apply the same thinking to boost your traffic.
3. Make registering as simple as possible. Only ask for basic info. The more time-consuming the registration process is, and the more info a company insists upon getting, the more likely online prospects will be to abandon the process and move on to a company that makes buying online easier.
4. Give them an incentive to register. The toughest part about winning online buyers is getting them to take that first leap of faith. Send an e-mail offer for a one-time discount that can only be redeemed via your company’s website. Make it time-sensitive so prospects will act on it before it gets buried beneath a bunch of other e-mails. Then monitor which offers get the best response, and role those offers out again to subsequent web leads.

Tags: boost, Google, Google Analytics, incentive, leads, registration, search, selling, tags, traffic, website