In case you're just tuning in, this post is one in a series of training for jewelry store owners. Today's topic is "Conversion Rate Optimization" and how to find someone to help you measure and improve it.
Measuring your conversion rate on any single web page will be tedious. We've previously said you could use the free Site Overlay tool inside Google Analytics to do it, but before you even get to the actual testing you need to outline your goals and how you will achieve them.
The Jeweler Website Advisory Group exists simply to share website education with jewelers. We actually hope you will take our ideas and use them directly, but if you don't have the time, then you will need to hire someone to help you.
Here are some things to think about when looking to hire an ad agency, web designer, or even an in-house employee that will work on the website for you.
1. Can they help you achieve your business goals?
Okay, that sounds like a big one. First you need to know what your own business goals are. Do you simply want to make your email list larger? Do you want to sell more? Do you want publicity? You need to verbalize your own goals so the person can help you. Make sure to prioritize multiple goals in order of importance.
Each of your goals will carry a different message, and each will need a different advertising attack method. Find someone who understands this, otherwise you are just wasting your time and money.
2. Can they help determine how to measure the success of your goal?
This is going to be tricky. How do you measure the success of any of your advertising? Please, please, PLEASE don't simply measure your success by the amount of money you make or by simply asking people "How did you find out about us?" when they come in the store.
Verbal confirmations and pure sales are poor methods to measure success rates of your marketing. Consider this for a moment... What's the buying cycle for selling a diamond and an engagement ring? Each customer wants the best value for their money, and you have to educate them on the 4C's, show them sample settings, get a few diamonds in on memo, set up appointments to look at the diamonds... it's a long process.
Because of this, you can't simply measure today's internet marketing according to the volume of today's sales. Technology easily allows people to bookmark your site on their computer and smartphone for future needs. In fact, if you consider all of the social bookmarking services like Delicious and Digg, people can bookmark your site and reference back to it years later, even on a new computer.
Each measurement strategy needs to be customized, and the results will all have a large degree of inaccuracy.
3. Can they craft your internet marketing to attract your target audience?
Do you know who your target audience is? Local demographics will dictate how you should be marketing. Most likely your most profitable sale category is bridal, and your bridal age group is dominated by the Millennial Generation.
Do you understand the Millennial Generation? If they are your target, you better find someone who understands them and what they like then tune your website landing pages and internet marketing to their frequency.
Let's admit that each of us has good knowledge of our own generation. Your web design company or ad agency needs to know how to research what influences your target generation.
4. Can they actually identify conversion issues on a website?
We all have our own likes and dislikes when it comes to website design. If everyone in the world had your same likes and dislikes, you would be able to create website and ad layouts that converted all the time. Of course that's not the case, and sometimes you must let go of what you believe is good and listen to the experts that understand what's good.
Using Google Analytics, you can identify problems with a website, but just because this feature is available, it doesn't mean that your potential ad agency/web designer knows how to use it. Make sure they understand it, and ask them for examples of prior discoveries they've made by using it.
Those are the 4 important questions you should ask a potential website design company or ad agency you are considering hiring. There are more advanced topics like usability research and A/B webpage testing, but each of those deserves a dedicated Daily Golden Nugget.
Asking these questions during an interview process is just the first step. You have to be willing to follow the directions the agency/designer gives you in order to track your success, to target your audience, and to better your website in order to achieve your business goals.
