Reduce the number of form fields

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Filling out forms annoys almost everyone. And the longer the form, the more annoying they tend to be. There’s usually a direct correlation between form length and completion rates. In general, the longer the form, the less users will be motivated to fill it out. Take a good look at your form fields. How important is it that you collect all of the information that you’re asking for? Is each field so valuable that you’re willing to lose leads over it? Remove any fields that hold no or minimal value. Consider collecting secondary information in follow up emails or phone calls.

Give users enough time and information to make a decision

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The more complex the product or service, the more time it may take your customers to make a commitment. What are the risks associated with making the wrong decision?— Is the product expensive? Does it require a significant time commitment? Could it pose a health risk? Put yourself in your users’ shoes. How much information would you require in order to make an informed decision? The more risk associated with potentially making a wrong decision, the more research we typically seek out as part of our decision-making process. Experiment with things such as copy length, filtered content and comparison charts. Don’t be too aggressive up front and make sure you’re providing your user’s with the right amount of information.

Focus on a single call to action

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Multiple offers confuse the user and confused users means lower conversions. Determine which single call to action is most important and make it the focus of your page. Make all other options clearly secondary. Create an obvious hierarchy. All links are not equally important. Attempts to be all-inclusive can create leaks in your sales funnel by distracting users ready to commit with unnecessary information.

Look at your users’ decision-making process

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We typically require differing amounts of information depending on where we’re at in our decision-making process. Early in the process, users will most likely be researching and gathering information. During this educational phase, try utilizing lengthier page content or microsites that provide more information—especially for products or services that require a more complex level of consideration. As users move from the research phase and drive closer toward their decision, don’t distract them with unnecessary content. The closer you get to closing the sale, the less you should have on your page. Consider testing anything that could be reduced, from supportive copy to design elements to navigational items, or even implementing a single-purpose landing page.

Minimize the number of choices

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We think we want a lot of options to choose from, but psychological studies show that when it comes to decision-making, the more choices we’re given, the less likely we are to actually make a decision. This especially holds true on the web, where attention spans are less than ideal, and can apply to everything from your product and service tier offerings to your navigational structure and information architecture. Take the time to categorize your options and simplify until they’ve reached their most intuitive, logical form. If you have a lot of products, use filters to help narrow down the choice.

Simplify!

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Take an inventory of your website, landing page or email template and remove anything that isn’t absolutely necessary. Look at design elements, copy, form fields, and anything that isn’t needed to get your point across. Resist the urge to include every last detail. Excess information can clog up your conversion path — especially late in the buying cycle. Simplify until there’s nothing left to remove. Be direct and to-the-point. Avoid fluff copy, big words and fancy verbiage. Sum things up. Figure out which aspects are the most important to your conversion funnel and make them a priority. Follow Pareto’s law of the vital few: What 20% of your page is contributing to 80% of your goals?

Show some social proof

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We’re all subconsciously wired to seek to be a part of a group. If you have a sizable following, whether it be on social media or a general customer base, show it off. Knowing that there is a large group of people with whom your users share common goals and interests can add reassurance to their decision-making process. Publish your social media follower counts or even individual post “likes” and shares to your page — but be mindful that a lack of followers could also have the opposite effect! If you’re still building your social media following, try simply utilizing supportive calls to action. Think along the lines of McDonald’s “Billions and billions served”.

Address fears, doubts and uncertainties

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Find out what fears, doubts and uncertainties your users have and address them. Consider what you’re asking of your users. What risks do your customers face by interacting with or making a purchase from your site? Does the reward outweigh the risks? Depending on your scenario, it could be as simple as adding things like an SSL security certificate, trust emblems, testimonials, or offering some kind of guarantee. You may also consider addressing any specific concerns directly through strategic page copy. If you need more insight into your users’ thought processes, there are a number of tools and usability testing software and services available, such as UserTesting.com, which offers some quick, free user testing services.