rtising Conversion: All You Need to Know

Advertising professionals know that conversions have become a buzzword. “Conversions” can be used to describe “more advertising conversions”, “increase conversion rate,” or “optimize conversions!” But these terms are very real results that are critical for business growth and advertising campaigns.

Conversions are important. You know that conversions are valuable. But do you really understand what they are? What are the most important types of conversion for digital marketing? And what does that mean for your brand?

This digital marketing conversion guide will provide details on the buzzword.

Advertising conversion definition

A conversion is any action taken by potential customers that you deem valuable for your advertising campaign. Google defines a convert as.

A counted action is one that occurs when someone interacts (clicks on a text ad, views a video advertisement, etc.) and then performs an action you have defined as valuable for your business such as making an online purchase, calling your business from a cell phone, or calling your business.

These “conversions”, one after another, guide visitors through the buyer’s journey and become more meaningful along the route: prospects convert into leads, leads to customers and customers to loyal advocates.

Different types of digital marketing conversions

Although the term “advertising convert” is used to refer to a goal action that a visitor takes within an ad campaign’s ad campaign it can also be used for other purposes. A prospect can complete many different types of advertising conversions. The type of campaign and landing page experience required to convert your prospect will determine what you want.

Let’s look at the most popular types of advertising conversions and how they are likely to be used.

Click-through conversion rate

Click-through rates (CTRs) for ads are something you’re familiar with. However, it’s important to know what a potential customer does next.

A user clicks on your ad and arrives at your landing site. There, they evaluate your content. They respond positively to the content and click the page CTA button. This takes them to another landing site. This page is most often designed to encourage a higher-value conversion, such as a trial signup, or a sale.

Here’s an example from Moz of a click-through page.

What should you aim for in click-through conversions?

Transactions between businesses and prospects are low-risk early in the buyer’s journey. These transactions rarely involve money. An email address can be exchanged for a report or a number to perform an audit. This means that you won’t see click-through pages at any point in the funnel.

However, at the bottom of your funnel you want buyers committed. Transactions carry a greater risk. These transactions involve money, credit cards forms, commitments and payment plans. Buyers are scrambling to find the back button. This is where click-through pages come in handy. It’s not a goal. The click-through page is a means to an end. It helps with sales pages, trial pages, and other pages by attracting prospects to share sensitive information such as a credit card number.

For generating click-throughs, use landing page tools

The click-through goal should be placed before high-friction conversions. It should include all the persuasive elements that you would normally find on landing pages for any other goal, but without friction. These are the tools that you will need to create a click-through.

• This is a click-through landing page. contains content such as benefit-oriented copy and a magnetic headline. It also has a 1:1 conversion rate (meaning that there are no links that could distract visitors) and social proof. It doesn’t try to create a traditional transaction where the visitor gives up something in exchange for an offer, like most pages. There is no form. It is not possible to request sensitive information. This happens on the next page. This click-through page is intended to highlight the benefits of the offer.

HelloFresh has provided an example showing visitors the information above the fold.

(Clicking on the CTA takes you to this page where you can select a HelloFresh Plan.

Click-through landing pages are incredibly useful, even if they don’t have the desire to click on the CTA or make a purchase.

• Retargeting technology. Click-through campaign give you an opportunity to learn more information about your prospects. You can create separate retargeting campaign for each audience by using retargeting pixels that are embedded on the click-through page and the sales page. The click-through pages that convert but not the sales page are more advanced than those that bounce from the click-through. Both audiences will require different messaging to help them get through the sale and on to your thank-you page.

How to convert click-throughs into sales

To get click-through conversions, the goal is to make visitors feel more comfortable and convert at a higher value. Avoid the pushy.

• Frontload persuasive content: Don’t worry about payment details or terms of sales. These can be added to the sales page that links to your click-through landing pages. You must first focus on persuasive content. This includes all the benefits of your offer, as well as the proof it works, such success stories, glowing testimonials and statistics. This type of content emphasizes the value of your offer while minimizing the cost. Visitors will be convinced by a good click-through page that they are interested in the product or service regardless of their price.
• Make page length a function risk: An excellent rule of thumb when designing landing pages is to: TThe greater the risk, the longer page. Your page will not need to be as persuasive if you are selling an online workshop at $50. You will need more convincing content to convert the prospect. The longer the page, the greater the risk.
• Conduct extensive testing: Although A/B Testing can increase the conversion rate for pages at the top, it’s the pages at the bottom that are most likely to benefit from this technique as they are directly related to revenue. A/B testing can help you determine the best page design and structure. Heatmaps will give you additional insights into CTA placement, page length, and other factors. These two data collection methods are invaluable when every conversion is counted.

Leads

A “lead” is a prospect who expresses interest by sending a piece or contact information to receive an offer. It’s an advertising conversion goal. This contact information can be email, phone number or social media profile. An offer could include a resource, such as an ebook, or a report. A perk like a discount or demo.

The beginning of a formal relationship between a prospect or business and their lead generation is called “lead generation”. The prospect will exchange their contact information to receive your offer. This is an indication that they are interested in your service and agreeing to being contacted by your marketing department.

This contact information can be used by a business to begin the lead qualification process through multiple channels, such as email or social media. The goal is to collect more information until the lead has been deemed ready for sales.

Tools for lead generation

It’s not enough to generate leads. It creates qualified leads that can eventually turn into prospects. The following tools will help you get the job done.

• A squeezepage: A squeezepage is a landing site that’s intended for lead generation. It’s not like other lead capture pages. It only requires a small amount of information to be able to follow up with leads.
• This is a super-short form. The form usually has only two fields for email address and name. Many squeeze pages also reduce friction by removing the need for name submission. These pages are very effective in generating leads because they are simple and don’t require much in return for contact information.

Conversion is key to generating leads

Top-of-funnel targets are more difficult than bottom-funnel ones. Keep it simple

• Keep it short: Use bulleted lists to highlight the benefits of your offer.
• Provide a lot value: Offer ebooks and tip sheets, reports, emails, newsletters, and email updates with discounts or up-to-date information
• Get little in return: When your sole concern is to generate a lead for qualification, ask for as little information as possible, such an email.
• Do not overwhelm prospects with media. If you offer a lot of value in exchange for little, there is minimal risk to the prospect. To convince prospects to send you their email address for an ebook, you don’t have to use a lot of infographics, explainer videos and trust badges. On top-of-funnel pages, keep content minimal

Purchase/Sale conversion rate

Any transaction in which money is exchanged for goods or services is called a sales conversion. This conversion is the most desirable. It occurs after your lead has been nurtured and they are comfortable buying.

Tools for sales conversion

A sale is more than just a transaction. It requires trusting a lead. This is not possible with a single sales page. It takes many quality, relevant, pre-, and post-click experiences. There are certain components that a landing page with a sales focus should contain.

A salespage aims to convert sales. Marketing professionals use the term “salespage” in a different way. It can be used to refer to a click-through page designed to convince visitors to purchase a product. Although the sale doesn’t take place on this page, it is still intended to sell a product. Others marketers use the term to refer to the page on which a sale takes place.

To clarify…

We have now distinguished a click-through from a sales page. Therefore, we use the term “sales page” to refer to a page where a sale has been made. This page follows a click through page. This page is specifically designed to close a sale transaction. It usually contains a form that collects sensitive information, as well as small indicators of trust and security.

What’s more?

HTTPS Because this page is where visitors will enter their sensitive information, any other than HTTPS may prevent users from converting. Even if you think, “Nobody searches for HTTPS,” they aren’t. Google Chrome, the most popular browser on the internet, will tell a user if a page isn’t secure.

Retargeting technology: It’s impossible to avoid it: You must draw many visitors back to your post click sales page. Retargeting technology is essential for this. A campaign that retargets people who have clicked through to the sales page but didn’t convert will look different than a campaign targeting people who did click through. It will allow you to determine if your audience is open to receiving a second sales message or needing more nurturing from the marketing department.

Thank you page: Although not all landing pages require one, sales pages do. This page can be used to thank your lead and welcome them as customers. It can also provide value right away with suggested content such as tutorials that will help them get the most out of their new product.

Conversion is key to generating sales

Your sales page is only necessary if you have created a click-through page that works. You’re almost done. Visitors must still feel confident submitting sensitive information and making a purchase. Security is the key.

Have confidence in your product. A satisfaction guarantee is a great way to show your confidence. They make customers feel more at ease buying because they know they can always return the product if they aren’t satisfied.

Use badges: While HTTPS offers security, it’s the experience of security that converts visitors. You can also type “Secure in the address bar.” Visitors may still need icons from Norton Antivirus or the Better Business Bureau to ensure their information is secure.

Make your form as easy as possible. Visitors will search for reasons to question your brand and purchase on your sales page. It’s crucial to make the purchasing process as easy as possible. Make sure you only capture the information necessary to close the sale. Label all fields clearly. The labels should be permanent and not hidden as placeholder text. Users should not have any difficulty correcting errors by clearly and concisely displaying error messages.

Here’s an example.

Testing extensively: A sales page, which is linked directly to revenue, acts like a click-through page. Traffic willing, it should also be extensively tested to increase conversion rate.

Conversions of video views

Video views refer to conversion goals in which users view a specific amount of video. The network in which your video is played determines the “certain amount”.

A video view on Instagram or Facebook is when someone watches the video for more than three seconds. YouTube requires that a 30-second video ad be viewed for at least 11 second to count as a view. To count as a view, an instream ad on YouTube must be watched for 30 seconds or more.

What is the best time to target the video view conversion goal?

Some people find it strange to consider video views as a conversion goal, since they don’t end with a lead or sale. Video views can be extremely valuable at any stage of the funnel.

They are great for introducing a brand or figurehead. They can also be valuable educational content that demonstrates your authority. They can also be used to prove your effectiveness with testimonials and case studies.

Videos can be used in so many places that they are more effective than others. If you are aiming to convert video views, it is likely that you will be aiming at conversions in the pre-click experience using either instream or outside ad.

How can you convert video views?

Engagement is the key to video view conversion.

Keep it brief It is unlikely that viewers will pay attention to your video for more than two minutes. This should be the longest length of your video in most cases. A video that lasts less than 30 seconds is better. You can pack as much value into as little time as you like, but without sacrificing watchability.

You can make it longer if necessary: Longer videos are sometimes used to introduce people to extraordinary achievements. A 5–10 minute dive into the background of an unknown figurehead can help your brand stand out (e.g., advertising courses).

Copy but not steal: Take a look at successful campaigns, study case studies and copy ideas. But don’t make a video that looks like another brand. This is in keeping with Howard Gossage’s old saying, “Nobody ever reads advertising.” People read what interests and sometimes it’s ads. You can’t afford boring your customers with the same old video approach that’s been recycled to suit your brand.

Why aren’t advertisers focusing on conversions instead?

Advertising was straightforward before the internet. Advertisers placed ads and salespeople sold. The way people bought products and services changed drastically when digital businesses emerged. They could finally research and purchase all by themselves.

However, the advertising industry was slow to adapt. Although advertisements and web pages were sometimes viewed as distinct entities by those who created them, the people who navigated, clicked, researched, and bought all of these assets were part and parcel of the same experience.

The problem was compounded by a lack of tools and the old-school mindset that the best business was the one you started. If you didn’t fill your funnel with prospects, then you weren’t advertising.

Advertisers did what they were best at: They put out ads and drove traffic. Web designers did the rest.

Web users found the campaign to be unbalanced. They were directed to homepages by product ads, where they had to search for the offer that was promised. There was little trust or consistency, but consumers and marketers were both frustrated.

It was soon necessary to rethink modern advertising campaigns.

We know that a campaign doesn’t end with a click. Users expect consistency in landing pages and ads, value and a level that is so high, we call it 1:1 personalization.

Advertisers now have more tools to improve their landing pages. This is finally meeting users’ expectations. However, users still have a lot to learn before they can be satisfied.

Marketers still focus on generating leads rather than maintaining customers. Even though it is more profitable to retain customers, we now know that it is more profitable to generate leads.

Current customers are more likely to generate new customers than their current ones. They are on Facebook, YouTube and Google looking for leads or sales. They need to focus more on the post-click experience, as shown by the following data. They’ll keep putting money down the drain.

Benchmarks for each industry

What is a good conversion rate for your website? What is a low cost per click? What is the average click through rate? These questions are likely to be asked regardless of industry. While benchmarks cannot tell the whole story of a business, it is still useful to see what’s possible.

What is the best way to find out? These metrics will help you determine where your business is located.

A plan that will ensure conversion success

Now that you understand what an advertisement conversion is, and which conversions are necessary for your business, you can start to create landing pages that generate more advertising conversions.

Instapage is here to help.

Learn how Instapage, the number one landing page platform for marketers, can help you increase conversions and decrease your cost per click. Request an Instapage demo.

Author: Tyson Quick