why is my site not converting?

by what44
21 replies
its an information/ecommerce dj /music blog. looks good. gets niche traffic, but its not converting at all. i dont get what could be wrong? pls see dj-world (dot) com and let me know any ideas.

thanks for your time
#converting #site
  • Profile picture of the author icoachu
    Nice domain age. I haven't checked out your site. Just wanted to compliment you on your domain age
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    • Profile picture of the author what44
      yeah ive had that domain for a very long time. we were the first site to write books, do videos about how to learn to dj. we also started australia's first online vinyl shop way back when people were scared to put credit card details into a browser...
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    • Profile picture of the author fedor50
      Originally Posted by icoachu View Post

      Nice domain age. I haven't checked out your site. Just wanted to compliment you on your domain age
      This. Domain Age can help you rank sites for difficult keywords much easier because they have Google Trust
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      • Profile picture of the author eternalwarrior
        Well, not exactly true.

        I purchased one aged domain and found out that the site has many backlinks from xxx site. I tried to rank the site for some keywords but no luck.

        So, before buying an aged domain I would recommend buyer to check the backlink first using backlink checker tool.

        Originally Posted by fedor50 View Post

        This. Domain Age can help you rank sites for difficult keywords much easier because they have Google Trust
        He is referring to "what44" on #6

        Originally Posted by Bluestarace View Post

        What?? Who is 44
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        • Profile picture of the author ShaneBoyd
          The main reason your site is not converting is because people don't really know what the hell is going on when they get there. It's a bit noisy and crowded my friend. There is no headline or reason for me to stay there (other than the lesbian pic)

          I don't want to bash your site. I know you put a lot of hard work into it. However, once a person gets there, they'll have no idea what to do next.

          K.I.S.S

          Cheers
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          • Profile picture of the author what44
            thanks for the feedback...

            dont u think its obvious whats going on on the home page? there is slideshow of latest offers. a blog and you can buy dj equipment?? i dont think headers saying 'blog' or 'dj equipment' are going to help conversions? pls show me a site you know converts so i understand what you mean. or show me your site.


            Originally Posted by ShaneBoyd View Post

            The main reason your site is not converting is because people don't really know what the hell is going on when they get there. It's a bit noisy and crowded my friend. There is no headline or reason for me to stay there (other than the lesbian pic)

            I don't want to bash your site. I know you put a lot of hard work into it. However, once a person gets there, they'll have no idea what to do next.

            K.I.S.S

            Cheers
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  • Profile picture of the author blackrabbit
    Hey what44,

    I haven't had chance to look through your whole site but from what I can see, while the site looks sweet - there is far too much noise on the site. My eyes were so busy when I first landed on the homepage that I couldn't work out where your adverts etc were.

    Have you thought about seperating the site out into 2 distinct areas - you have your ecommerce stuff on the main site and then have the blog/articles in another area.

    This way you are clear from the off that you are selling product and not just a DJ magazine.

    If you don't fancy breaking the site into 2 sections then I would move the content below the product - ultimately it's going to be the ecommerce stuff that pays the bills and not the content so give the product the top billing it deserves.

    Use Google Analytics to see how real visitors use your site; change the layout around and see how this impacts sales.

    Remember - it's always worth testing everything especially when it comes to ecommerce.

    Good luck
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    • Profile picture of the author what44
      thanks for the ideas. i think you could be right thou. homepage does have alot on it and from tests vsitors are not clickingwhati want them to. i prefer simple sites, i think they might convert better. back in the old days it was mega simple and i made my full time income from it. it was 1 page only and a list of vinyl with a preview for each vinyl. u listened and u click buy. thats it.

      i think ive madeit too complex and need to declutter, butthen you have sites like dontstayin.com which is a pure mag site that has a crazy busy homepage, but laid out nicely with space.

      ummm.. maybe simple and clear layout is better than cramp everything in on 1 page..

      also a very succesful 80 million turnover site has the most insane options on one page. http://www.juno.co.uk but its pure ecommerce... i also tried with no blog and no sales still.
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  • Profile picture of the author Bluestarace
    As blackrabbit said clean it up a bit. It's too busy.
    Also, you might want to move the products section above the fold area
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    Whatever you do, do it well. Do it so well that when people see you do it, they will want to come back and see you do it again and they will want to bring others and show them how well you do what you do.~ Walt Disney.
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  • Profile picture of the author Chri5123
    Hey,

    Had a quick look at the site.

    As other's have mentioned there is too much going on.

    If you are focused on selling a product or service maybe think about putting a featured post in there so people will read that and that will be the focus.

    What I am saying is that when people land on your site - updated news is good and you have a lot of it.

    But you want to lead them as well - somewhere, whether that be for more ad clicks or sales.

    Chris
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  • Profile picture of the author intergen
    Like the others its too busy - but lets dig in. Also, I will suggest some tools to use later that have helped me increase conversions by huge amounts on multiple sites.

    The main CTA (call to action) is not clear. What is it that you want people to do when they get there? You should have 1 CTA above the fold. Others can come later. If you are selling gear be sure to get people engaged in buying gear immediately. The rotating images are going too fast slow them down by at least 1 - 2 seconds and be sure on those images that they have clear CTA's with minimal text. The whole point is to have a headline that will grab them and get them to click through. I clicked one and the landing page was fine.

    The key here is going to be to test, test and test some more. As BlackRabbit points out find out what your visitors are doing starting with the homepage; however, Google Analytics is a start but very clunky for split testing.

    I use Visual Website Optimizer to test. It has heat maps, click maps and the ability to set up and A/B test with variations in about 5 minutes flat. They also offer plugins for various platforms so in many cases you don't even have to go in and update code.

    Use the free trial period and it will give you a great idea of what people are doing on your site. In addition, just a few small adjustments can make a huge difference. If you don't know what's moving the needle on your site - its like driving a car with no instrument panel. So, install VWO and test, test, test - you will get your answer. Its not about what we think should be done here in this forum - its about what your customers think.
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    • Profile picture of the author what44
      finally!... thank you so much intergen. very good advice. oddly today i came across Visual Website Optimizer
      looks great. good points about cta. i want to capture emails and build mylist and/or get facebook likes. so ill make a big deal about the subscribe box.
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  • Profile picture of the author NeverStop
    I've taken a quick look and here's what I suggest you try:

    1) Take a close look at your keywords people are finding the site for, are they buying keywords? What are your top product entry pages and the keywords for these pages, take a good look at them they may give you a clue to what's going on.

    2) As soon as you hit the site you have leakage right at the very top of the page, a nice banner inviting people to leave the site straight away - remove the banner!

    3) Try moving the payment details to the header, they're currently in the footer, also is it free delivery for everything? If so, Where's the banner that screams FREE UK Delivery!


    4) Your fancy banner underneath the navigation, changing way too fast and you might want to revise the content of the banners with emphasis on benefits!!!

    5) Move all your products above the fold, it's not blatantly obvious that it's a shop, move dj video banner beneath the fold along with the 8 blog posts or move them to another page.

    6) Are your products competitively priced, could I get them elsewhere cheaper?

    7) Do you have analytics set up correctly are people actually adding products to the cart, if they are and not going any further, why? I noticed you're using Google Checkout, can you offer any other payment methods? PayPal or a payment gateway like Worldpay etc.

    8) There's not a great range of products on the site, are you in the process of adding more? In my experience and I've had a lot with ecommerce, sites that lack a bit of punch with the range of products in the catelog don't do as well.

    I've put together a few Magento websites and every one of them is making money, so it's not the ecommerce platform your using.

    Hope that helps
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    • Profile picture of the author what44
      thanks NeverStop. great advice. can you add a few links of your ecomm sites so i see what you mean.
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    • Profile picture of the author what44
      1) Take a close look at your keywords people are finding the site for, are they buying keywords? What are your top product entry pages and the keywords for these pages, take a good look at them they may give you a clue to what's going on.

      2) As soon as you hit the site you have leakage right at the very top of the page, a nice banner inviting people to leave the site straight away - remove the banner!

      3) Try moving the payment details to the header, they're currently in the footer, also is it free delivery for everything? If so, Where's the banner that screams FREE UK Delivery!


      4) Your fancy banner underneath the navigation, changing way too fast and you might want to revise the content of the banners with emphasis on benefits!!!

      5) Move all your products above the fold, it's not blatantly obvious that it's a shop, move dj video banner beneath the fold along with the 8 blog posts or move them to another page.

      6) Are your products competitively priced, could I get them elsewhere cheaper?

      7) Do you have analytics set up correctly are people actually adding products to the cart, if they are and not going any further, why? I noticed you're using Google Checkout, can you offer any other payment methods? PayPal or a payment gateway like Worldpay etc.

      8) There's not a great range of products on the site, are you in the process of adding more? In my experience and I've had a lot with ecommerce, sites that lack a bit of punch with the range of products in the catelog don't do as well.

      answers to NeverStop:

      1 - not they are not buying keywords. i am not the cheapest and i dont rank for any keywords for what i sell. mega competitve. red ocean products.... thats why some of my products are blue ocean, which i think will have a better chance (exclusive)

      no one is even adding products to carts, so somethings wrong somewhere...

      range of dj equipment products is very small , others have 25k!! i can increase the range as i have access to same products. my thinking and i could be wrong... i didnt want to sell everything becaus ethen im just another shop selling same stuff not cheaper as competors are ranking on 1st page of google for dj equipment, i dont get a look in. i tried adwords for certain products... got clicks, no conversions...

      still tryingt o solve the puzzle, but will change it as yoru suggesting and test...

      but i think might be better off taking off dj equipment products i cant compete on price and replace with own exclusive products...

      the quest continues...
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  • Profile picture of the author MonIncBaby
    For a site like this you need to capture and subscribe your prospects then pitch one of your offers down the road. Make it interesting maybe and SWEEPSTAKES or CONTEST. Hire a upcoming musician. Spend $40 - $50 on fiverr video testimonials. Have a 1-888 number and tell your prospects what they wanna hear.
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    • Profile picture of the author andrewkar
      get your sign up form on that image with two lesbian girls with something like "learn to play with them..." and I guarantee you that your CR will jump...

      Just place it in the right sidebar at the top of page so it's clearly visible...and you are good to go...
      Signature
      Do what you want to do!
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  • Profile picture of the author zigzag007
    The visitors may be distracted from your ads I believe.
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