Test Results, Make Changes

One of the keys to online success is extensive testing.

Use your stats program to understand what your site visitors are doing.

Track your site conversions (ad clicks, sales, newsletter sign-ups, new members, etc...) to see how much improvement you can achieve.  Sometimes changing one word in the title of your page can double your conversion rate.  The same is true for changing the color scheme, the size of your advertisements, the placement of your call to action, etc...

Sometimes the changes you make won't seem like they could possibly make a difference, but sometimes they do.  Since most internet users scan a page instead of reading it, getting rid of a picture that draws attention or putting an extra space between your headline and your main copy could be the small thing that doubles your conversion rate.

As you test different changes on your website, make sure you give the change enough time to prove or disprove itself.  If you get a big sale after 10 people come through your site, it might have nothing to do with a change you made, but just happened because the right person was on your site at the right time.  Allow hundreds of people to go through your site before making a decision on any changes you are making.

Another thing to consider is that sometimes the conversion rate will change because the quality of the traffic changes.  If you see changes in conversion rates that don't seem to make sense, look at your reports to see if the source of your traffic has experienced changes.  Sometimes with content targeted traffic, you will see an influx of new traffic from a new site that isn't performing as well. 

One of the best tools for testing your changes and results is Google Website Optimizer.

If you find something that works and generates revenue, stop fussing with it.  Leave the page or site alone as you work on other sites or pages.  If you decide to make some changes to a successful page, make sure you only change one thing at a time and that you print a copy of the page in the format that is working.  If your changes don't work, you will want to return it exactly to how it was when it was working.

If you have any questions, ask them in the forum

NEXT: Live Your Dreams