Designing a good sales website can be the difference between losing a customers and making a sale. You’ve got ten seconds to capture a shopper’s attention and convince them to stay—that’s how long it takes people to decide to keep reading, or move on.

Make Your Site User-Friendly
You need to plan your website carefully to make it really sell your product:

1. Have an attention-grabbing headline that tells customers what they’ll gain by staying. It should list some clear, compelling benefits—what they’ll learn and what kind of information you’ll provide.

2. Keep your website clean and simple. It should be easy on the eyes, with no more than a couple of key colors and a couple of easy-to-read fonts. Font should be very dark and contrast strongly with a lighter background. Avoid using patterns and limit your use of graphics.

3. Use more sales copy and fewer images. Images should be used strategically to support the sales copy, not vice versa.

4. Make your navigation easy. It should run across the top of your page or down the left side. The fewer clicks it takes to purchase your product, the better, because every time you ask potential customers to click, you lose some.

5. Make your sales process quick and painless. Don’t use hidden links. If you want people to buy from you, you have to make it obvious how.

Develop Your Customers’ Trust
Your website has to convey credibility and professionalism—people won’t buy from you if they don’t trust you. There are two main ways you can build your customers confidence in you:

1. Share your qualifications: how you got here and why you’re able to help them. Don’t just bullet-point your credentials—talk to them. Relate your experiences and explain how this product has helped you—let them see there’s a real person behind the site. Create an About Us page!

2. Use testimonials from people who’ve actually used your products. Video, audio, and written testimonials accompanied with customer pictures are proven tools for creating credibility with consumers. Make sure your testimonials have actual, measurable results people achieved using your product.

Create Customer Loyalty
Sharing relevant, interesting information can be a tremendous point of sale. Tell your customers what your product is, where it originated, and innovative ways they can use it. If you sell camping gear, post articles about great destinations for camping, or tips for staying safe in the woods. Give people a reason to come back to your site—there’s a good chance that, while they’re there, they’ll buy something. By educating your customers, you create a sense of loyalty that will make them want to buy from you rather than your competitors.

photo credit: mcmorgan08