Do you know the different factors that can help you reach as many potential customers as possible for your website or webshop? Are you already using options like search engine optimization (SEO) to bring more visitors to your site? Then you are on the right track. Even so, you are not done yet. In this article we introduce you to a particularly interesting form of (online) marketing: "neuromarketing". When you apply neuromarketing web design correctly, you will see that it can deliver impressive online value for your business.
What Exactly Is Neuromarketing Web Design?
In simple terms, neuromarketing is a technique that studies how the brain reacts to certain stimuli. The goal of neuromarketing is ultimately to influence the consumer's decision-making process. In web design especially, that is hugely important. Today, it is increasingly common to see neuromarketing web design used to lift conversion rates, such as more revenue in your webshop.
There are many different ways to apply neuromarketing. Think bigger than just options to raise the average order value in your webshop. Neuromarketing can also be used to prevent customers from dropping out during the order process. Applying it correctly gives you a structural advantage in your online business, both short and long term.
Conversion Optimization Is Crucial
Today we still see plenty of companies that do not apply conversion optimization and neuromarketing web design to their webshop or website. Larger players like Coolblue and Bol.com started doing this years ago. By applying certain psychology-based strategies in their marketing campaigns, they were able to lift their conversion rate by a few percent. That may not sound impressive at first, but for companies of that size, that quickly translates into millions of euros in revenue. Is conversion optimization equally important for smaller webshops or sites? On that we are very clear!
Minimize Friction for Visitors
Consumer mentality today is very different from 20 years ago. Even in the last 10 years, a lot has shifted. Buying a product online or signing up for a service is now the most normal thing in the world. Even so, you have to consider that potential customers can still hit certain points of friction. To ensure optimal conversion, it is crucial to minimize this friction. For existing sites and webshops, it is important to remember that conversion optimization is a continuous process you are never really done with. Optimizing conversion and neuromarketing web design always takes the following into account:
- Analyses being run
- Insights being gathered
- The paths visitors should follow
- So-called "best practices"
- Heatmaps
Do you also believe the number of conversions on your webshop or site can improve? Then the tips below can definitely help.
Avoid Mental Exhaustion
First, it is critical to analyze the decision-making process visitors go through on your webshop or website. At various stages of that process, visitors can experience "mental exhaustion". When the so-called "workload" gets too high, your potential customers' decision-making can become muddled. They drop out. That is painful, because the hardest part - getting potential customers to your site and convincing them to buy - is already done. Luckily there are several ways to prevent mental exhaustion:
Limit the Number of Choices
Mental exhaustion can already kick in the moment a potential customer lands on the homepage of your webshop or site. When there are countless categories or menu items, visitors quickly lose the overview. Combining categories and creating subcategories can significantly reduce the number of choices. It may take an extra click, but in practice that does not outweigh the risk of mental exhaustion.
Create Clarity
Have you split the products in your webshop into categories and subcategories? Then create recognition. You can do this very simply, for example with an icon per category. That stops customers from spending too long looking for the right section.
Keep It Simple!
When customers are prompted to fill out an order or contact form, it is important to avoid negative emotions. Avoiding those negative emotions through neuromarketing web design only works if you keep the design of your webshop or site as simple as possible. Make sure forms do not take longer to fill in than necessary, for example. Find the optimal balance between the information your business actually needs and the effort customers have to put in to provide it. It can also be worth helping customers by auto-filling some fields (for instance, address details based on postal code).
Pay attention to the look and feel of the order process. Make sure the purchase process does not become a dull procedure. Have an image of the chosen product scroll past, for example. That way the customer is reminded throughout the entire process of the great product they will receive once the order is complete. It also adds a bit more dynamism to the site.
Create Positive Emotions
When we look at the design studies on neuromarketing web design over the years, we can conclude that neuromarketing has two specific pitfalls:
- Anticipating things that can create negative associations
- Using tactics that evoke positive emotions
An important part of neuromarketing web design is 'social influence'. Social influence is actually as old as marketing itself. The importance of word of mouth still cannot be underestimated - only the way it is presented today has changed. Want to know how best to create positive emotions on your website or webshop? You can do that with the following tips:
Choose to display customer reviews on your business website. These can be reviews from Google Business, for example, but also from one or more social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter etc.). Quotes from happy customers can work wonders. Just do not overdo it.
Try to integrate "customer cases" into your website. A short quote can certainly evoke a positive emotion, but a complete customer case told as a story can add real extra value.
Working numbers into the website or webshop is also always rewarding. Make it clear, for example, how many customers your company has already helped, how many products have been sold, and so on. Numbers have the unique effect of convincing people, time and again.
Tap into the popularity of a particular product or service. Many webshops now use a "bestseller" category. That works because people like safety and feel good when a large group of others has already ordered the product before. It creates a kind of trust.
Not Quite Sure Yourself?
Still not getting it dialed in even after applying the tips above? No problem - Webfluencer is a professional partner that helps optimize your website's conversion using neuromarketing web and webshop design and a range of other marketing and design techniques. For questions or more information you can always get in touch. Ask your questions by phone or email - we are happy to help.