Converting clicks to customers

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Manish Dalal | 04 May, 2011
The Internet today has become a powerful tool for businesses to influence their customers and market their businesses irrespective of their size and market reach. Globally, consumers rely on the Internet to not only search for solutions that match their personal and business needs, but also to conduct transactions online, all from the comfort of their home or office. India too has seen a surge in businesses and people turning net-savvy and embracing the convenience offered by the Internet. India today is home to the fourth highest number of Internet users in the world and boasts of over 81 million Internet users.

Getting the right attention online
A simple keyword search for "handicrafts" can result in over 10,000 matching categories on popular search engines. As a result, consumers today have limitless choices in an extremely crowded online market. The key challenge is to attract visitors to your Web site and then persuade them to do business with you - moving them from ‘clicks’ to ‘customers’.

A .com domain name can help spell success online
An important first step to conducting business on the Internet is to select and register a domain name. The domain name can be used to represent your company’s brand and identity on the Internet. To help boost your company’s visibility on the Web and to establish your brand online, choose a meaningful domain name and register it as soon as possible.

Just as location in the offline world can be important for the growth of your business, a .com domain name can be the cornerstone of your online success. A .com domain name currently is one of the most popular domain names on the Internet today. Further, it helps provide instant visibility and credibility for your brand online, both in India and globally.

From searching online to shopping online
With services such as travel booking, movie tickets booking, and banking gaining popularity online, the Internet has provided an opportunity for businesses, small or large, to convert their online target audience into customers. India’s ecommerce market is expected to grow 47% in calendar year 2011 to reach INR 46,520 crores.

One of the key reasons for this surge in online buying is the convenience the Internet offers. Being online offers a significant opportunity for smaller businesses in the e-commerce space, as they can now market their business online while saving on overhead costs as they acquire new customers. The Internet has become a great equalizer for many companies and marketers. Without spending a fortune, small companies can look to compete alongside the larger companies.

Understanding the online buyer
A survey on online buying attitudes reveals that a Web site has to put visitors in a buying mood. It must engage the visitor as they more willing to buy when the involvement is high. There are specific features of your Web site that can help you achieve that goal.

Provide abundant yet relevant information first
Once a prospective customer arrives at your Web site, presenting him with the most interesting and unique features of your product or service will help to engage him. .

As general rules of thumb:

Don’t clutter your home page with unnecessary details.
Clearly state your key message using as few words as possible.
Use summary descriptions, sub-headings, bulleted lists and short paragraphs.
Adopt a standard one-column format for easy reading.

Easy to use
It is important to ensure that your Web site is easy to use. The menus and navigation on your Web site should be as intuitive as possible, offering the customer all the information that he might need in a simple way, with minimum clicks. For example, if you own an air-ticket booking site, the content on your home page may highlight some key offers that you have, information on all flights and clearly indicate the bookings page. All offers could link directly to your booking page, so that each time a customer clicks on them, he is led to the page where he can get all details about the offer and book his tickets within a few easy steps.

"Less is more" is the cardinal rule when selling online. This means the fewer the clicks, the better. A 2006 Marketing Sherpa study revealed that online shopping carts are abandoned almost 60 percent of the time due to poor processes and designs. That is a lot of lost sales for any business!

Inspire trust and boost security
Creating customer confidence for your online business can be a challenge. In the online world, your Web site does the talking on your behalf; hence showcasing your credibility in the industry and your capability helps engender trust in the visitor.

For example, if you own a motel business, then your Web site may showcase the rooms that you offer through an elaborate picture gallery. The Web site may also have a comprehensive "about us" section that covers all the aspects of your business, contains information on the services that you offer and also includes media and client reviews, so that people visiting your Web site get to know as much as possible about your motel and can assess your credibility for themselves. If your Web site offers the option of purchasing online, it is also important that your customers trust that it is safe to carry out a transaction on your Web site. This trust can be built by deploying a sound secure payment system on your Web site.

With a little strategic planning, you can help grow your business. You work hard to get the clicks. What could be more important than turning those clicks into customers?

Welcome to the Internet World!

* Manish Dalal is the Vice President APAC of Verisign.
* The views expressed by the author in this feature are entirely his/her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of SME Times.