Your website should be your ultimate B2B lead generation teammate.
Not one who sits on the bench and never gets a chance to contribute. You want an all-star that gives Sales hot leads.
That requires designing a website user experience that guides prospects through their Buy Cycle.
What Is User Experience?
User experience, or UX, is a neat way of capturing how users interact with your site. Every decision you make, from where you place a video to font size (and what that font is saying), is part of UX. Each element feeds into a user’s overall impression of your company.
When prospects interact with a credible, resourceful website, they view the company as a credible, resourceful business partner.
What looks like an insignificant element – like the placement of a video or graphic on your homepage – can be the difference maker between getting leads and missing business opportunities.
3 Steps To Creating a Website User Experience That Converts
Plugging in any old website template and expecting it to produce hot leads for your sales team doesn’t work.
You must intentionally design the UX to propel a visitor forward through their Buyer’s Journey.
Step 1: Clear the Path
Eliminate sliders and carousels
All the way back in 2013, we had data proving people didn’t click on links in the second, third, or fourth image on a webpage carousel or slider.
The drop-off can be as extreme as almost 90% of clicks on position 1 and less than 5% for the rest.
If you opted for a slider, hoping to give visitors more above-the-fold calls to action, it’s not working. Instead, the design choice:
- Slows down your sites, potentially lowering your SEO ranking
- Annoys users who can’t control when images change
An annoyed user won’t convert. If Google is keeping you off page 1 because of a slow site that has poor UX, you aren’t capturing potential leads. For the users who do find you, the slider annoys them, decreasing their likelihood to explore your services.
Simplify everything
It’s not just sliders you want to edit out of your site. You also want to ditch any visual or written element that causes confusion.
When you overwhelm a visitor with images, buttons, videos, and text, they don’t have a clear path forward. Should they watch the video, sign up for an assessment, read a blog article, or call you?
Never shout for attention
Bright, big, bold icons shouting “We’re the best!!!!” or “Clients LOVE working with us!!!” give off more than a hint of desperation and inauthenticity. (They also fall 100% into the “visual clutter” bucket.)
Yes, you do have clients who love working with you
But you don’t shout it out with graphics and a string of exclamation points.
You have to prove it.
Show why you’re different
5 elements that make you stand out to prospects:
1. Client stories and testimonials
2. Any result you can back up with numbers
3. How long you’ve been in business
4. Industry accreditations
5. Awards
6. Logos of organizations you’ve worked with
Use story-rich, problem-focused content across your site to demonstrate you’re a credible partner who can be trusted. Incorporate your SEO keywords into what you create so you continue to capture traffic from Google.
Handle objections
You know the common objections prospects raise during the sales process. Put content on your site that dismantles the issues you know they’ll raise on a call with your reps. Use the testimonials and story-rich content discussed above to cement your position as a value-adding partner.
Tip: Testimonial videos are highly effective conversion tools
77% of participants in a Wyzowl survey said they decided to buy a product or service after watching a testimonial video.
90% said that what a peer says about a company matters more than what a company says about itself.
Step 2: Give Them Reasons To Click and Convert
You’ve decluttered your site and laid out a clear path for prospects to take. Keep them on course with strong calls to action and offers.
Switch up your calls to action
Pop open a new browser tab, go to your website, and survey your calls to action. Ask yourself:
- Is there variety?
- Do you have options other than “Call Us”?
- Do your calls to action convey value and urgency?
If you answered “no” to any of the above, revisit how you write your calls to action and what you deliver.
Remember, you have 2 audiences: people who want to engage your services right now and those who are just getting to know you. Sprinkle buttons across your site to capture both.
A/B test button colors
It takes more than catchy text to make a call to action that pops off the page and grabs attention. Even the most persuasive text stands out against a dull grey background.
So what color should you use?
The most effective call to action button color aligns with your branding and gets results.
The Denver Broncos wouldn’t use Miami Dolphin teal on buttons promoting season ticket packages. It’s eye-catching, but not their color scheme.
Stay true to your brand. Then A/B test to figure out what works best with your audience.
Deliver value on the other end of every CTA
Now that you have a variety of eye-catching calls to action, it’s time to focus on what’s on the other end of that CTA.
Whatever you offer must feel valuable to your prospects. Otherwise, they won’t fill out your forms.
Prospects will share their name and email address for:
- Videos or guides they cannot find for free elsewhere
- Content that solves a high-priority business problem
- Meetings or assessments that provide meaningful takeaways
- Tools (like calculators) that show them how to save money
Step 3: Follow Up
You started the objection-handling process on your site, but that does not relieve salespeople of their role.
Addressing objections on your site removes barriers to people giving up their contact information. That’s not the same as removing a barrier to part with their money. Most likely your sales team will still have work to do.
The well-written content on your site serves as a starting point for your sales reps. They should tailor their message as they dig into a prospect’s specific concerns.
Designing the Right UX Preps Your Website and Business To Win
Approach UX design like a top-notch athlete training for the championship game.
The Peyton Mannings and Joe Montanas of the world didn’t walk off the street onto the field ready to perform.
Their glory on the field was the culmination of years spent honing their craft.
Your road to lead generation won’t involve as much sweat
However, it will require continual, dedicated effort, because UX best practices are not:
- Static: To stay fresh and bring in new opportunities, you’ll continually tweak your site.
- Universal and absolute: What resonates with one target market could completely alienate yours.
As you optimize your site for UX, monitor the analytics
See what generates traffic, clicks, and downloads. Then ask why. Apply the takeaways where you can.
Website Lead Generation Is a Team Effort
Manning and Montana didn’t win their Super Bowl rings on their own. They relied on talented teammates to reach and win the championship game.
Get website user experience guidance from digital marketing consultants
Your experts will share best practices, make data-informed recommendations, then set up and manage everything for you.
Instead of remembering to check in on the A/B test of your button colors between client meetings, you can focus solely on serving your customers and growing your company.
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