Best Practices for Conversion: The New Engagement Funnel in 7 Steps

Best Practices for Conversion: The New Engagement Funnel in 7 Steps
best practices for conversion
Introduction- Below are two conversion graphics: one is the traditional conversion funnel as we The New Engagement Funnel tend to think of it -limited to our website. The other is a much more comprehensive view of conversion-an engagement funnel where we instill relevancy into the con-In general, most organizations version process by incorporating fundamental marketing processes and steps.spend more time and money promoting their websites
through acquisition channels such as search or affiliate mar-keting than they do optimizing WEBSITEexisting conversion rates.
In addition to neglecting the conversion process, we tend to think of conversion too narrow-ly as only converting existing site visitors in the, "here and now." We often overlook apply-ing marketing fundamentals Traditional Conversion Funnel Engagement Funnelsuch as identifying and defin-ing profiles that comprise our larger target audience, 7 Steps to Increase Conversion Engagement- developing the right offer and Applying Relevancycorresponding message, and 1. Identify Conversion Goals & KPIsdelivering it to them at the 2. Define & Acquire Target Profiles-Apply 40/40/20 Rule3. Organize and Optimize Site Structureright time in their purchase 4. Develop a Compelling Messagecycle. This can all be summed 5. Place Effective Calls to Action 6. Enhance Shopping Cart / Lead Capture Processup with one word: relevancy. 7. Test, Measure, and Refine
Volumes of books are written about these seven steps. Here, we'll discuss both princi-ples and specific best practices, but won't cover all aspects of every step. If we leave something out, it doesn't mean that it isn't important-we simply chose to summa-rize a best-practice guide and have highlighted some of the key points.1. Identify Conversion Goals & Key KPIs per Unique Visitors (or Ad Click Thrus)Performance Indicators Leads/Customers SalesTop Three Conversion-Related KPIs Leads per VisitorCosts1. Leads or Customers Customers per Visitor2. Sales Sales per VisitorUnique Visitors3. Costs Costs per Visitor
By applying each of these metrics to specific parts of the KPIs per unique visitors (or ad click thrus) indicate performance at the site engagement funnel, we will effectively measure each entry level, which allow us to measure the effectiveness of our landing and step as it relates to overall conversion. home pages. We should substitute unique visitors with ad click thrus when we are receiving site visitors from a specific ad campaign and can tie it to a previous ad impression. In this case, we should be using multiple, specific landing pages developed in a relevant fashion for each specific profile (dis-Ad Impressions cussed later). In some cases, we don't know where home page visitors come from due to branding, word of mouth, or other untraceable sources and thus should use unique site visitors in place of ad click thrus (As a side note, the Unique Visitor or home page should be optimized for the largest profile or target audience Ad Clicks group to maximize unique visitor conversion).
Cart Entrants Measuring the engagement funnel at the point of site entry allows us to evaluate site effectiveness from a messaging point (audience and profile tar-geting) as well as site design, additional creative elements, and again, our offering on the site. If measuring ad click-thrus, we should also be cognizant of using consistent messaging and design in our landing pages. Measuring the unique visitor KPIs will allow us to measure the engagement funnel from website to funnel end.In order to formulate the equation and apply each of these conversion-centric KPIs to the various parts of the KPIs per Shopping Cart Entry (or Lead Form Entry) engagement funnel, we place the conversion metrics in Leads/Customersthe numerator and the measures of the engagement Salesfunnel in the denominator as outline below: Leads per Cart EntryCosts Customers Cart EntryKPIs per Ad Impression Sales Cart EntryShopping Cart EntryLeads/Customers Costs Cart EntrySales Leads per Ad ImpressionCosts KPIs per shopping cart entry (or lead form entry) indicate the performance of Customers per Ad Impression these important site conversion tools. Several organizations stage the steps of Sales per Ad ImpressionAd Impressions t... [download for more]