Successful websites do two things. First, they attract a regular flow of visitors who are interested in what you offer. Second they are designed to get these visitors to take action. To convert your flow of traffic from interested lookers to buyers or at least get them started into your conversion process. This could be building your email list, quote requests or signing up for a webinar.

There is a science to building a website that gets your visitors to take action. These are some of the smart design techniques that convert visitors into customers.

1. Memorable: Create a design that is memorable and that will stand out from your competition. This does not mean highly graphical or artsy. It means having a style or attitude that people will like and remember. It is a design appropriate for your industry.
2. Information: Internet buyers and searchers are in a hurry. They are looking for companies that can quickly deliver what they are after. Make it quick and easy for them to find the information they are seeking. This is done on your website through formatting, clear navigation, and a clear writing style.
3. Sales funnel: Guide your prospects through a well thought out selling sequence. Grab their attention, build their interest and then get them to take action. Your best selling sequence should be built into your website. More on sales funnels.
4. Prevent surprises: Give your customer all the information they need to make their buying decision before they start to pay. A common mistake in ecommerce is not revealing shipping costs until the payment step.
5. Communicate progress: If you anything in your site that can some time to complete, let your visitor know how far they have gone with a progress bar. This includes ecommerce checkout, a survey they are completing or even downloading a file.
6. Build trust: People are cautious buying online with good reason. Make it easy to contact you with a phone number and an actual street address (not a PO Box). Post your privacy policy, shipping procedure and your refund policy.
7. Keep improving: Be prepared to make changes to your site based on actual experience. Measure your website’s bounce rate. Bounce rate is the number of visitors who visit a particular page and then leave your site, without going on to other pages, divided by the total number of visitors to the page. Other key measurements include visitor counts, traffic sources and conversion rates.