Leads. To a business owner, that word rings loud with opportunity. Each lead is a small victory.

For some companies, website leads are a low priority or even an accident. For others, they work diligently on a strategic lead generation process to reach business objectives each quarter. In today's digital environment, most businesses have a website. 

But is a website enough to be successful online? In short, no. Some sites are so awful in terms of web design and user experience (UX) that it would be better for the company to have no website at all.
 

77% of agencies believe that the biggest weakness for clients is their website's lousy UX.

Let's get into how to optimize your website so it works for you.

 

Optimize Your Website For Conversions in 1, 2, 3...


A website is your company’s online business card — a digital handshake if you will. Aesthetics matter; usability matters; content matters. We could write a whole series of articles on everything else that matters, but what matters to you? Leads.

Here are three simple explanations of how to optimize your website for lead generation.

1. Clear Call to Action

Websites have one of two problems: (1) they do not have a clear call to action they are asking users to take, (2) there are too many calls to action that are vying for a user’s attention, which lead to no action at all.

If you want to start converting, you need to ask for the right action. A call to action, or CTA, is a specific action you want a user to complete on your website:

  • Form submission
  • Phone call
  • Demo request
  • Download a resource
  • Email newsletter subscription

Think of the objectives that drive your business forward. Do you sell content, or are you in the Saas space? What is the length of your sales cycle? Is it a priority to grow your email list? 

Once you figure out the business objective, use it as your CTA. Make sure that one action is immediately accessible upon landing on your web page. A best practice is to put a CTA button right in the website's header area.

Here is an example of how Microsoft elevates a clear CTA for users to watch a demo on their Dynamics 365 Sales overview page:

2. Clean Landing Pages

Think about a plane for a moment. 

What would happen if a plane was trying to land on a tarmac with debris, luggage, trees, other planes, etc.? Well, it simply wouldn't be able to land and would fly away. 

It's called a "landing page" for a reason.

If a user arrives on a web page where there is no clear direction or space for them to "land," then it's bye-bye lead. The benefit of a landing/sales page is that they are less cluttered than your website (or at least should be). 

No website menu bar. No pop-up chatbot. No promotional fly-ins. A clean, concise landing page provides a seamless experience for distracted users. 

As a pertinent side note, never promote what you can’t deliver on. If your call to action is “request a free demo,” but the landing page asks for payment information, that is an example of poor UX and lowers your credibility. 

Don’t sell what you can’t serve. Set up your sales team for success!

Once a user clicks through an ad or button on your website, focus the landing page on a hyper-targeted ask. What is the lowest barrier to entry action you can ask a prospect to take? 

Request the least amount of contact information you need to get that user pulled into your sales funnel — name and email are the most common.

3. Consistent Content Creation 


Last but not least is the value of content creation. We've all heard the famous quote from our friend Bill Gates, "content is king." Let’s get into how it can help generate leads.

Content is a major part of search engine optimization (SEO). We won’t go into detail about this, but blogs are an easy piece of content to start moving the needle. 

Creating content is something you can do internally, hire a content creator to do, or both. Rouse the support of team members and encourage a collaborative effort to write blogs. Not sure what to write? Start with the frequently asked questions you answer every day for clients.

Insights for Content

  • Include keywords. Be sure to include keywords that are meaningful to your business. Think of the phrases you want to show up for that your target audience may put into a search on Google. Let those queries inform the beginning of your content creation.

  • Drive interested traffic. Remember, content is never aimless, but a means to an end. Create interest in your products and services by providing valuable, industry-relevant information around them. Share this content on multiple communication outlets (i.e., social media, email marketing) to drive prospective traffic to your website. 

  • Include a call to action. At the conclusion of every blog (as you will see in this one), include a soft call to action. CTAs are everything. Good content that is intentionally written serves and sells at the same time.

Share valuable content alongside lead capture resources like a lead magnet. For longer form blogs, sprinkle the same CTA throughout it. Check out some of C5Insight’s premium resources to give you an idea of downloadable content.

ClickDimensions Experts

Now, let’s put it all together.

  • Write a valuable piece of content, in this case, a blog.
    • Optional: Create a lead magnet and an accompanying promotional graphic to insert in the middle of the blog. 
    • Include CTAs within the content or baked into the graphic. 
    • Upon clicking, the user should either be taken to a landing page or pop-up that creates a sense of urgency. 
    • Ask users for an email to send them the resource (or whatever information you need to complete your end of the deal).

    A successful lead generation strategy starts with optimizing your website’s call to action, landing pages, and overall content. Some of these optimizations may seem trivial, but they make all the difference to the user who becomes a lead, and the one who leaves.

    If you use ClickDimensions and would like to learn more about our marketing services for Microsoft Dynamics, contact C5Insight at 704-895-2500. As strategists, we can assist you in creating an impactful lead generation process for your company.