One of the first questions small business owners ask me isn't about code or design – it's usually, "Why aren't people doing anything on my website?" I get it. You've invested time, money, and emotional energy into your online storefront, and yet...crickets.
What people are really asking is: how do I increase conversions? Whether that's more phone calls, bookings, purchases, sign-ups, or actual visits to your store – your website traffic means very little if it isn't leading anywhere.
So today, we're tackling that head-on, in plain language and practical terms. We're diving into how to improve your website's conversion rate in 7 strategic steps. It’s rooted in psychology, real-life examples, and the kind of no-nonsense advice I give when I’m sitting down with a client over coffee in Franklin, TN. No fluff, just actionable insight.
Before tweaking buttons or rewriting headlines, you have to understand why visitors aren't converting. The issue is rarely isolated. It's usually a messy mix of clarity, trust, value, and timing.
Let me give you a quick story. A client of mine runs a boutique fitness studio. Their original homepage had professional photos, a glowing testimonial slider, and a whole section about the founders. But guess what was missing at the top of the page? A clear class schedule or immediate next step.
Visitors were interested, but disoriented. They didn’t land to read a story. They landed to book a class – and the site made them scroll and guess to do that. The conversion problem wasn't the copy or aesthetics. It was a misalignment of intent vs. experience.
Spend time mapping out visitor intents by page type. For example:
Once you understand what someone expects in that moment, your job becomes facilitating it. Not convincing. Just enabling.
You can make guesses or you can use data. Tools like Hotjar and Microsoft Clarity let you watch how users behave, where they get stuck, and what they ignore entirely. Patterns will emerge.
One e-commerce client of mine watched users repeatedly scan over a sizing chart buried in a dropdown tab. We moved that info visually higher on the page, and within a week, size-related returns dipped noticeably. That’s not magic. It's observation leading to action.
It blows my mind how many sites take 10 seconds to explain what they actually do. That might not sound like much, but in web behavior? It might as well be a decade.
A value prop needs to answer three questions within the first scroll:
Here’s a practical example. A cleaning company we worked with originally used the hero tagline: “Let Us Do the Dirty Work.” Cute, yeah. But it didn’t say what services they offered, who they served, or what made them different. We rewrote it to:
“Custom cleaning plans for busy Franklin homes – eco-safe, pet-friendly, guaranteed.”
Suddenly, we know what (custom cleaning), who (Franklin families), and why (eco-safe, pet friendly, guaranteed results). That change alone increased free estimate form submissions by over 40% in three months.
Imagine walking through a busy convention floor. You don’t have time to read long posters – you’re scanning, looking for quick wins. Treat your homepage like that booth: fast, clear messaging that tells someone if they’ve found the right spot, then guides them forward.
That may mean rewriting your headlines. Or removing the giant “Welcome!” banner and replacing it with your actual promise.
Let’s talk CTAs. You’ve probably got some version of “Get Started” or “Contact Us” on your site. But are those really the right prompts, in the right places?
Big flashy buttons are fine. But if the surrounding content doesn’t cue motivation, no one’s clicking. Think of CTAs as exits off a highway – they only work if they show up at the right timing on the user journey.
Let me show you this in action. For a local wedding photographer, we tested the following call-to-action at the bottom of her portfolio gallery:
Original: “Contact Me”
Tested: “Let’s start planning your wedding shoot – availability fills fast”
The change boosted inquiries by 27% within 6 weeks. Why? Because it reinforced immediacy, aligned with the content above it (bridal shots), and made the reader feel like they were already moving forward.
Not every call-to-action has to be “Hire Me.” Sprinkle in opportunities that require less commitment:
Think of them like doorways that move people just one step closer to working with you. Conversion usually happens in stages – lead nurturing, not leap-taking.
Conversion is really just a fancy word for trust transaction. A user decides: “I believe this solution will meet my need.” That belief is fragile, especially online. So your site must earn it before demanding action.
Testimonials are great, but not when they’re thrown into a rotating carousel with no context. Trust elements work best when they correspond directly to user objections.
Are people worried you cost too much? Include a story explaining how a client avoided mistakes or saved thousands by hiring you.
Are people skeptical of quality? Add a video walkthrough, or link to external reviews (Google, Yelp, etc).
Are people worried you’re not legit? Include addresses, licenses, associations, photos of the actual team.
A landscaper client of mine put together a downloadable checklist titled “What To Ask Before Hiring a Landscape Company.” That one piece of content did more to improve their conversion rates than any redesign. Why? It flipped the script. It provided value before asking for anything in return and positioned them as an expert.
Give people something that reduces uncertainty. That's trust-building at its finest.
This one’s technical, but it matters more than most people realize. clunky or confusing navigation kills conversions. Especially on mobile, which now accounts for over 60% of all web traffic according to Statista.
Your navigation should help users find what they need quickly, not dump everything you offer into 12 dropdowns. Think in terms of user goals, not organization chart.
For example: Instead of “Services” → “SEO” & “Web Design" & “Consulting” as equal links in a mega menu, use fewer, clearer paths like:
Each of those can lead users to tailored explanations vs. overwhelming them with options they may not understand.
I once audited a hair salon's site and the mobile menu was literally covering half the screen every time you tried to close it. They hadn’t tested it on devices outside their own. We rebuilt it using Webflow with a collapsible menu optimized for thumb areas, and traffic-to-booking rates on mobile went up by 18% overnight.
Here’s my two-minute mobile menu test: Can you find your three most important pages with one thumb, one hand, in under five seconds? If not, fix it.
A lot of business owners write about themselves: their methods, their timelines, their passion. Here’s the thing…visitors mostly care about themselves.
What if instead of saying “We build beautiful, custom websites,” you said:
“Your website should do more than look good – it should attract & convert your ideal customer effortlessly.”
You’re now selling a result, not a deliverable. That’s a powerful shift.
I worked with a roofing company where we rewrote “Our team has 30 years of experience” to: “Protect your home with the same care we give ours – 30 years of leak-free roofs in Middle Tennessee.” Specific. Visual. Relatable.
Wall-of-text syndrome is a real conversion killer. Break paragraphs. Use bullets. Guides. Sub-heads. Imagery. Your reader isn’t reading word-for-word. They’re scanning for proof of relevance.
Give them moments that quickly confirm: “Yes, this is for me.”
If you don't track, you can't improve. This is true whether you're a bakery or a SaaS startup.
You can't just ask “is the site working?” – you need KPIs. Here are some suggestions:
Tools like Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager are free and offer powerful insights if set up properly. You don’t need to be a data nerd – just track one or two critical actions, and benchmark your progress monthly.
Don’t overhaul everything at once. Instead, experiment with:
Even using VWO or simpler tools for A/B testing leads to long-term gains, and helps you make decisions based on evidence, not opinion.
Improving your website's conversion rate isn’t about gimmicks, popups, or flashy animations. It’s about building trust, providing clarity, and thoughtfully guiding someone through the decisions they’re already trying to make.
Most of the ideas we’ve explored – aligning with intent, reframing value, decisive CTAs, trust cues, copywriting, and more – revolve around one core principle: meeting people where they are, then walking with them a little further through honesty and empathy.
If you start with understanding and follow these 7 steps conscientiously, you won't just increase conversions. You'll build a site that genuinely reflects your business's purpose, values, and impact – and that resonates. That's where real growth begins.
Copyright © Zach Sean Web Design
