A common question we get during our client meetings is what a conversion is. For us, it's crystal clear and a natural part of Contitude's vocabulary. Here we take the opportunity to live as we learn and write a blog post about one of the most common questions we get during a customer meeting. For the avoidance of doubt, this is about a conversion in digital marketing and primarily linked to B2B marketing. This is also Contitude's take on conversions and there are many others who use the word conversion in other ways and mean other things.
What counts as a conversion according to Contitude?
A conversion is when a visitor to a website takes an action that provides you with some form of information about that person or makes a purchase. This means that a conversion can be anything from someone making a purchase, filling out a contact form, signing up for a newsletter, downloading a guide or providing their contact information through a chat on the website.
The difference between soft and hard conversion
We usually make a distinction between soft and hard conversion. The difference is about the intent of the conversion. A hard conversion should be with the intention of making a purchase or clearly moving down the marketing funnel. A soft conversion is one where you get contact information but the intention is not clearly to make a purchase. A clear example is when someone books a demo or an appointment through the website. This is a hard conversion and it is easy to understand that the intention is to make a purchase or to evaluate before a purchase. A soft conversion could be someone signing up for newsletters. It's a conversion where you get an email address and you know that someone is interested in what you are delivering but it doesn't have to be because there is an interest in buying your services or products.
A conversion should lead to a lead
Whether it's a hard or soft conversion, after a conversion you should have received a lead. It doesn't mean it's a hot lead, it just means you've got a lead. There is also a clear difference between soft and hard conversion. A hard conversion should result in a hot lead and a soft conversion should result in a colder lead.
How is it assessed whether it is a soft or hard conversion
In some cases, it is difficult to judge whether it is a soft or hard conversion. Take the example where a website visitor downloads a guide or whitepaper. If you've worked hard to develop different types of whitepapers, you've probably noticed that the same whitepaper can be downloaded by a hot lead and by a cold lead. The same applies to different types of whitepapers or guides. Some are soft conversions and some are hard. The important thing is to make sure there are processes in place to take care of the incoming leads so they don't go to waste.We have developed an excellent template for writing whitepapers which you can find via the link below. DOWNLOAD THE WHITE PAPER TEMPLATE
Always measure conversions
Conversions are a metric that should always be included in the statistics that you as a digital marketer, salesperson or CEO should analyse. Whether you have a Marketing Automation system that keeps track of this for you or not, it's a good idea to keep statistics on how many conversions happen.In the best of worlds, you have a Marketing Automation system that can actually show how that lead became a lead in the context of a conversion.
Then you can get answers to questions like:
- How did the lead find you in the first place?
- What pages did the lead visit before they completed the conversion?
- How long did it take from the first visit to the website until the conversion took place?
This information will allow you to better plan how to allocate your marketing budget in the future. If all leads come from Google Ads, then put more of your marketing budget there. Or if no leads come from Facebook at all, it's probably a good idea to stop spending time and energy on Facebook.
Follow up conversions
As mentioned earlier, every lead is valuable and it is important that they are not wasted by not being followed up. Whether you automate this using a Marketing Automation system or do it manually, there needs to be a plan in place to follow up on all conversions. If it's a soft conversion like signing up to a newsletter then you just need to make sure that a newsletter actually goes out with the set frequency but if it's a hard conversion then it's important that you find a way to connect with those leads in a nice way; it could be through follow-up emails or through a cheerful conversation. Feel free to try out what works best for you. Often some methods work better on some conversions and on other conversions other methods work better.
Summary
A conversion is when a website visitor performs an action that provides you with their contact information. It can be anything from making a purchase to signing up for a newsletter.There is a difference between a soft and a hard conversion and it is important to understand the difference. A hard conversion is more valuable than a soft conversion.A conversion should always lead to a lead, whether it's a warm or cold lead. Make sure you always measure and follow up on leads so that you get the most out of your marketing efforts. Want help converting more of your visitors?
Book a meeting with us via the link below and we'll be happy to tell you all we can. Book a meeting with Contitude
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