How to build a website optimised for sales

Marketing your business is a vital part of getting sales and spreading word of your offering. Mentor Jacob Kent-Ledger is the Creative Director of agency KentLedger - so he knows more than most about how to market effectively. Here are his tips for creating a website to impress your existing and potential customers.

In business, your website is the suit you wear to an important interview, your impeccably-decorated shop window - your perfect first impression. So make it count. With a growing number of businesses turning to online to generate sales or improve their leads, it’s key to make the most out of what’s available to you.

Gone are the days when the internet was brand new and you could google anything and find what you wanted straight away. Now, with over two billion people actively using the web across the globe, finalising that sale is essential to the growth of your business.

3 tips to optimising your website for sales:

Be passionate about your product or service when describing it on your website. Imagine it’s a Dragon’s Den pitch: would you want to buy from someone who just listed the bare details of a product? Don’t overdo it though - you don’t want to become a cheesy website pushing for sales.
Make it easy to use. If your website isn’t optimised for mobile, or takes too long to load, people will go elsewhere. That’s the harsh reality of the internet. Ensure you have attractive content on the homepage which keeps the user engaged. You have, on average, six seconds to make a customer’s mind up when they see your website. The best way to improve this is to look at your website as if you were a customer. What do and don’t you like? Is that pop-up box you added to capture email addresses doing your head in? Perhaps it’s time for a change.
Have testimonials or reviews. The internet is one big marketplace, so make sure people know WHY to choose you. Include reviews and encourage customers to give you feedback, be it positive or negative – even the negative will help you refine your product.

Getting sales won’t happen overnight, but these 3 steps can drastically help improve your potential sales and, properly implemented, can see you increase sales every time.