It happens so often…
A business owner looks at the stats of their website, and sees that it gets a reasonable number of visitors.
But there are no sales, emails or phone calls coming in. Nobody is asking for a quote.
And the owner wonders…
“Does it even make sense to have a website? This isn’t working for me.”
There could be many reasons why people visit your website, and don’t buy or reach out. Most of these reasons are very easy to fix.
So…
Why are your website visitors not contacting you?
1. Do not assume that every visitor is ready to buy.
Buyers typically go through phases in the buying cycle – first they browse, then they research, and then they buy.
Depending on where they are in their buyer’s journey, they could be doing any of the following:
Researching a problem.
Comparing suppliers.
Looking for typical prices.
Checking whether you provide a particular service, or service a particular market.
Looking for your telephone number for future reference.
Reading an article.
Checking your physical location.
Simply exploring their options.
The bottom line is this: You cannot expect every visitor to reach out or make a purchase. Some of them will come back later, but many of them won’t.
That being said…
If targeted visitors (SEO, PPC ads, etc), who should ideally contain a decent percentage of potential customers, consistently leave without taking any action whatsoever, it makes sense to dig deeper.
Red flag #1: Visitors cannot immediately understand what you do or offer.
You have maybe three seconds to “hook” a visitor to stay on your website before they “bounce” (leave without any clicking or taking any action).
If they are not assured that they are in the right place immediately, you have lost them. You can check this in your analytics under “bounce rate”.
Brutal fact: if a visitor has to explore your website to find out IF they are in the right place…
They won’t.
As such, a short version stating exactly what you do should be right at the top of your site, and more clarity should follow in the first major section of your home page.
If the answer to “what does this business actually do?” is not immediately clear to anyone landing on the home page, you are losing potential buyers.
You need to tell people – as soon as possible – what you offer, who you serve, where you operate, and what pain point/s you solve.
Don’t be vague. As a business person, you understand the value of time. Respect the visitor’s time, and give them the info they want ASAP.
Be clear, and be specific.
Red flag #2: They cannot see why they should choose YOU.
The way to fix this requires two steps:
a. Discuss things like (depending on the niche, who you serve and what you offer) experience, expertise, convenience, local knowledge, specialization, etc.
b. Your positioning – what makes you different from the next competitor? Do you target a very specific market segment, or do things faster or better, with more personal service, or is there anything else you can state that your competitors do not offer or include in their offer?
You don’t need a long list of claims – research your potential customer, find out what matters to them, and focus on those.
You just need to communicate a convincing reason for people to trust YOU, and choose YOU.
Red flag #3: Your website does not communicate trust:
If someone wants to do business with you for the first time, and they do not have a reference from a personal acquaintance who has dealt with you, it involves a measure of risk for them.
After all, the internet is full of scammers. Why should they trust YOU?
They look for trust signals like:
Testimonials and real buyer reviews.
Clear contact information, and – if applicable – your physical location.
Photographs of your business and/or your team, and – where applicable – photos of past work.
Qualifications, certifications and accreditations.
Clear policies and guarantee details.
Give your potential customers or clients as many reasons as possible to trust you.
Red flag #4: Your website looks – or is – badly outdated.
Fair enough, some small business owners go overboard on this one, always wanting their websites to be flashy and modern. That’s okay, as long as it is still easy to use, contains the needed info in the right places, and loads fast.
But for most industries, your website just has to look neat.
Even if your website was well designed, with a timeless, minimal look, you could still lose the visitor’s trust if you have things like outdated information, old photographs, broken links, and – probably the worst thing you can have – old promotions which have long since ended.
Minimalist designs tend to look current for longer – but make sure the above points are addressed, and that everything is easy read, especially on mobile.
If your website has any of the flaws mentioned above, and/or appears visibly dated, people start wondering whether you will take care of them like you take care of your website.
Red flag #5: Too many distractions.
It is possible to overload a website with information. In fact, it is possible to make it plain annoying, while it looks fantastic.
Watch out for things like too many menu options, the proverbial “wall of text”, competing offers on the same page, too many calls to action, throwing together unrelated services on one page, popups, and outbound links.
More is – very often – not better. In most cases, the simpler your website is to understand and navigate, the less reason your visitors will have to leave.
Your visitor should find it easy to see – and take – the next logical step.
Red flag #6: Visitors are unsure what to do next.
When you present your call to action, what do you want your visitors to do next? After they have read your home page and/or services page, how should they proceed?
Do you want them to call you, to request a quote, book a consultation, make an appointment, send a message or visit your showroom?
Don’t assume visitors will work this out themselves.
Just be clear. You don’t need to be aggressive about it, and keep it short. Simple beats flashy every time.
Red flag #7: Contacting you is difficult.
Believe it if you like…
We have seen contact pages buried in the sub-menu of the “about us” navigation menu item.
The reality is that – in most cases – the buyer has other options. If you make it difficult in any way, or – as we like to call it – add any more friction than is necessary, they will move on to the next website.
Check the following:
Is your phone number easy to find?
Does the phone number actually work, or has it changed?
Is your email address correct, or has the recipient left the company?
Does the contact form work?
Does the form ask for unnecessary information, adding friction?
Is your WhatsApp option obvious if/where appropriate?
Can someone easily contact you from a mobile phone (tap-to-call)?
Do you explain when/how soon they can expect a response?
The simpler the process is, the better.
A useful test:
Ask someone who doesn’t know your business to find your contact details.
Don’t help them. See how long it takes.
Red flag #8: Your website fails to answer common questions.
People come to your website to find information, which they then use to make a decision. If they cannot find it…
Do the math.
You don’t – in most cases – need to have an exhaustive knowledge base, but you do need to answer the most basic questions which can influence their decision:
How much does it (product/service) cost?
How long does it take to deliver?
Where – physically – are you located?
Do you provide services in my area?
Do you offer any particular service they need?
What happens after I contacted you, and how soon?
Do you work with businesses like mine (size, industry)?
What makes your service different from competitors?
Note: Your website doesn’t necessarily need to answer every possible question.
However, the more important questions you answer in your content or FAQ section, the easier it becomes for a visitor to decide whether or not to contact you.
Red flag #9: The website attracts/receives the wrong prospects.
Sometimes, the fault doesn’t lie with the website…
Ask yourself this: What are the expectations of the people who visit your website?
In many cases, the visitors you receive are simply not suitable prospects.
For instance, if you offer premium, custom/tailored work, but your marketing focuses on being inexpensive, your visitors from social media or advertising arrive only to realize you are out of their price range.
Or your mechanical workshop website has a lot of content about how to actually do specific jobs on a car, which attract people who want to work on their own cars – and not people who want to bring you their cars to work on.
A Simple Website Conversion Check:
Open your website and answer these ten questions:
☐ Can I immediately tell what this business does?
☐ Is it clear who this business serves?
☐ Can I see why someone should or would choose this business?
☐ Does the website look current, does everything work, and does it contain current information?
☐ Does the website feel trustworthy?
☐ Can I easily find the contact information?
☐ Is there an obvious/clear next step?
☐ Does the website answer the basic, important customer questions?
☐ Does it provide evidence to support its claims (reviews, case studies, qualifications and certifications)?
☐ Does it attract the type of customer this business actually wants?
Then add a final question:
“If I were considering this business for the first time, would I feel confident contacting them?”
Fix the biggest issues first.
In many cases, fixing everything in one go simply isn’t an option. it takes time to collect things like testimonials, photographs of completed jobs, case studies, etc.
So, start simple:
a. Make your offer clear. What do you do, and for whom?
b. Improve trust – testimonials, photographs of jobs and your team, accreditations, and information that showcases your expertise.
c. Make it easy to contact you, ideally in multiple ways.
d. Lead visitors to their next step.
e. Remove distractions and friction. Make everything as simple, clear and easy as possible. Make your navigation simple.
But….
Maybe the problem isn’t your website.
In some cases, the website itself isn’t the problem. neither are untargeted visitors.
It could be that your offer is not competitive, or that your positioning or targeting is off, competitors have stronger reputations, or the product or service doesn’t address a real pain point. maybe you are simply not getting enough visitors to make the math work yet.
Your website is just one link in your marketing ecosystem. It might be the hub around which everything revolves, but it is not the only thing that can “go wrong”.
Look at all of the possible things that could be wrong before you start making changes to your site.
In conclusion — Your Website Has a Job to Do
Fact: Your website doesn’t need to – and cannot – persuade every visitor to reach out or buy from you.
But it needs to get the basics right, and help the visitor understand:
Whether you’re relevant to them/their situation.
Why they should consider you at all.
Why they should trust you over a competitor.
What they should do next.
If these four things aren’t clear, a percentage of your potential customers will simply leave and look elsewhere.
The bottom line is this:
Don’t just ask whether people are visiting your website. Ask what their expectations are, and what happens when they get there.
That is a much more useful question.