From my book: “25 Things You Can Do to Get Better Results From Your Internet Marketing.”
[22] Why Websites Don’t Get Inquiries (or more inquiries)
There are many reasons most businesses only get a limited number of inquiries from their websites. Based on my experience, here are 7 common “inquiry killers.”
[1] No traffic, weak traffic, or poor-quality traffic.
If you have less than 500 visitor sessions at your website per month, there is definitely something not working correctly with your internet marketing. If your Google Bounce Rate is above 50% you have a problem and you should figure out what it is.
[2] Your inquiry form does not work properly.
It happens all the time. I spoke with someone yesterday and they told me they had not received an inquiry from their website in more than two weeks. I tested the form and found that it did not work properly. Ouch!
[3] Your email does not work properly.
It is shocking how often this is a problem. One client I worked with was receiving inquiries, but, unfortunately, they were all going into a spam-junk folder. Another business owner called me after their inquiries “suddenly dried up.”
The first thing I did was test the inquiry form, and guess what, the email address the inquiry information was sent to wasn’t working properly.
Power Tip: I like to send all inquiries to two email addresses, and/or to two people, one as a backup notification, just for this reason.
[4] There are typos throughout your website.
Typos are unprofessional and can be easily translated into a poor reflection on the quality of your business and the services and products you offer. It may leave a potential new customer thinking less favorably about your business.
[5] The look and feel of your website is too basic.
Maybe your website does not communicate that you can provide the level of service a potential customer seeks.
Amateur, do-it-yourself websites often under-perform when compared to most professionally designed websites. It boggles my mind that business owners think they can create their own websites without any design, programming, or marketing communications expertise – and then still expect it to generate leads.
[6] A poor marketing message kills inquiries.
Ineffective communication of a unique value proposition (UVP) and a strong WII-FM message (i.e., What’s in It For Me?) is one of the biggest reasons a prospective new customer will leave a website before making an inquiry.
[7] Lack of social proof.
Potential new customers like to see testimonials, reviews, ratings, awards, and memberships in professional associations as part of your marketing message. It creates a psychological confidence that is more likely to lead someone to make an inquiry at your website.
