Is your website doing enough to convert your visitors into leads, customers…and revenue? Are you answering audience questions and responding quickly to your market’s need for information? Is your information the BEST?

We asked Andy Crestodina (Co-Founder & Strategic Director, Orbit Media) why the right content matters and what optimization strategies niche publishers should be focusing on now:

 Why is the right content so important to lead conversion? What works and why?

“The content is why they came. It’s why they care. And in the end, it’s why they convert.

If you doubt this for even a second, just watch your own online behavior for a few minutes. Why did you click around on that last site? Or look at your browsing history. Why did you go to those websites? Or look at the last newsletter you opened. Why did you sign up for this?

Aligning your content with their needs is the goal of the digital marketing and of every publisher in every medium. Your visitors and every potential reader out there has questions, curiosities and needs. Our jobs are to help them with our content, answering their questions and solving those problems.

If we give them what they want (answers) they may give us what we want (register, buy, subscribe) Here is a framework that shows how visitors go from content to conversion. It starts with their questions and ends with an action!

Here’s a hypothetical example showing the relationship between content and conversions. We’ll use Sterling Woods Group, a friend of Niche Digital…

1. 10,000 people per month are looking for information about content monetization
2. 1,000 people per month find an article on the Sterling Woods blog
3. 10 people per month subscribe after reading these articles
4. 1 subscriber per month contacts Sterling Woods asking for help

It’s the content that attracted the visitor, built the trust and created the opportunity for conversion! If you’re interested in learning more about this approach, here’s an article with a more detailed explanation about content and conversion optimization.”

What optimization strategy could niche publishers adopt, right now, to increase their conversion rates?

“Email list growth is a key to success for every publisher in every niche. And there’s a simple trick to increasing your email subscriber conversion rate and improving list growth. The key is to add things to your sign-up form. They’re easy to remember because they all start with P.

• Prominence
  The form should be obvious. Consider using a pop-up. Or at least making it an element that appears everywhere. Also, use contrasting color to make it stand out. If people don’t see it, they’re not going to sign up!
• Promise
  Tell people what they’re going to get and how often. Unless you tell them what they’re signing up for, they’re unlikely to convert!
• Proof
  Evidence increases conversions. So add the number of subscribers to your form (“Join the 10,000 people who get email…”) or use a testimonial of a happy subscriber (“One of my favorite newsletters!”)”

Here’s an example of a form that includes all three P’s…

Source: How to Start a Blog, Orbit Media

Editor’s Note: Andy will be leading the session, It’s all about the Benjamins! Creating a Next Gen Revenue-centric Website at the Niche Digital Summit in Chicago, Sept. 25-27.

*******

More about Andy: Andy Crestodina is a co-founder and the Strategic Director of Orbit Media, an award-winning 38-person web design company in Chicago. He is also the author of Content Chemistry: The Illustrated Handbook for Content Marketing. For over the past 15 years, Andy has provided web strategy and advice to more than a thousand businesses.

Niche Media has the best events, education, and training in media! Our super niched-out events & content give target-audience publishers in the B2C, hobbyist, B2B, city & regional, and association markets the tools they need to build revenue, audience, and more.

********