I see this happen so often. You launched your shiny new website. You added an amazing offer, for example a video that people can buy. Or private yoga sessions that people can book. But then – crickets! Nobody’s buying.

Fret not, my friend, you’re not alone! Selling online unfortunately isn’t as easy as quickly putting your offer on your website. The good news is, there are a few simple steps that you can take to optimize your website for sales and I’m happy to share them with you in this blog post.

#1 Communicate clearly and keep it simple

People on the web tend to want information quickly, so it’s important to communicate clearly and make your information easy to read and digest.

Don’t overload your site with overly complex design, animation, or other effects just to impress your viewers. An uncluttered layout allows viewers to focus on your message.

Your website visitors don’t want to browse around your website for several long minutes to find the information they’re after. They want to find it quickly, otherwise they’ll leave. So if your site looks complicated with a lot of options to choose from, they click away to check out another website.

Here’s an example from Gabby Bernstein’s website. She follows a pretty common layout with a big header on top with a call to action. Below the header Gabby offers her visitors options how she can help them and what they should do next. Each option comes with a short headline, a sentence with further information and a button that really pops out.

This is a very standard website layout used by thousands of people – simply because it works! It’s familiar, it’s clear, you find everything you need AND it’s optimized for conversions.

#2 Make your copy easy to read

Obviously, it’s the content that counts, what you’re actually saying, but if your text is difficult to read, you’re not doing yourself (or your visitors) any favors.

The most easily read combination is black text on a white background, but many other color combinations are acceptable if the contrast is good. It’s a good idea to ask a friend or family member to test your website and get their feedback to see if it works.

Also, don’t add huge text blocks on your site. A website is not like a book, people are not reading the same way, they are more scanning the content. Write scannable content, use headlines that say exactly what to expect, use sub headlines and bullet points or small paragraphs.

Finally, use emotionally-charged language and amazing storytelling to get your visitors eager and excited to try your product.

Here’s a great example from Radiantly Alive Yoga in Ubud, Bali:

#3 Answer all your client’s questions

Before buying something online, it’s normal to have lots of questions. The problem is, for a client it can be awkward to ask everything that’s on their mind. They don’t want to inconvenience you, or risk you thinking that they’re asking “dumb” questions.

I recommend that you add a really detailed FAQ page (Frequently Asked Questions), where you answer all the possible questions that a potential client could have. For example, if you’re offering a yoga retreat, you could answer questions like how to get there, what to pack, what to do if you have food intolerances, what style of yoga is taught, is the retreat suitable for beginners and so on. Even if you feel you answered all this already in your copy, it’s a good idea to collect all the questions in the FAQ as well.

Here’s an example from Sparkling Yoga Retreats for a FAQ page:

Bonus tip: add social proof

Social proof is when your visitors can see that other people bought your product already or are engaging with you. This adds trust and people are more likely to buy from you.

You can provide social proof by adding testimonials and reviews to your website and use them on your homepage and product landing pages. What can also help is to add your social media feeds, for example Facebook. Just like testimonials, including social media helps building trust and increase conversions.