In the not-too-distant past, if a customer was looking to engage the services of a business, they would have looked them up in the Yellow Pages, or perhaps have contacted the number shown on printed advertising. However, in the digital age, customers expect to be able to get in touch with a business quickly and with minimal fuss. This could be via telephone, email, visiting the business’s premises, or through online messaging. As soon as a visitor clicks into your website, you have approximately ten seconds to capture their attention. Here are our top tips for best practice on designing an effective contact page that will increase lead generation and qualification.
Designing An Effective Contact Page
Total Time: 30 minutes
Link To Your Social Media Pages
As instant messaging has become so prevalent, depending on your industry, prospects may want to connect with you on social media. The incentive of a fast response via Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram sometimes outweighs more formal channels.
By offering people a choice to contact you through social media channels, you give them the opportunity to establish more about your business.
Optimise Your Contact Form
Contact forms allow prospects to get in touch at all hours of the day without needing to write up an email. However, it is also important to have an email address prominently displayed on your website to give users the option of using it.
Websites that only offer a contact form as a method of getting in touch often cause suspicion that the enquiries will not be answered, or that the email address is being withheld. Contact forms, when crafted effectively, allow you to:
– Capture additional information about prospects in your sales funnel
– Create a qualification process for customers if applicable to prioritise customers
– Gain context about the needs of a prospect before engaging with them
The best contact forms consist of closed questions that reduce unnecessary friction and offer dropdown options to choose from. Including more than one or two open-ended questions may put off your prospects. They will have to spend more time phrasing and thinking about their answers.
It is essential to always include an ‘Other’ option, however. Users will become frustrated if the response they are looking for is not available. Another useful feature is to reassure users that their query is being dealt with. Add a friendly automated response to that effect.
Motivate Your Website’s Visitors
By explaining to your website’s users what benefit they will gain from contacting you, you are more likely to receive relevant enquiries. For example, what will you be able to assist them with?
As mentioned in a previous article, UX copy, or user experience copy, is essential in encouraging users to perform certain actions. Consider using phrases such as ‘To learn more, contact us below’. Another option is: ‘If you have any questions about [product/service], get in touch here.’
Utilise Your Google My Business Listing
As we are always keen to stress, Google My Business is a fantastic asset for businesses. It is particularly beneficial for small to medium sized enterprises.
A straightforward, free method of making your contact details accessible to all potential prospects is to ensure your contact information is up to date on your Google My Business profile.
Spend Time Getting Your Tone Right
An effective contact page should be welcoming, not perfunctory. Establish the correct tone for your audience, for example by thanking them for their interest.
An option to increase trust for prospects who are still unsure whether they will convert or not is to add a few testimonials. These contribute towards removing any last-minute doubts or worries.
Make It Accessable
Finally, ensure that your contact page is easy to find. If your details require effort to locate, users may get the impression that you don’t want them to make enquiries or get in touch. They will simply move to the next competitor on their search results.
It is therefore essential for your contact page to be clearly labelled with common examples being:
– Contact’
– ‘Contact Us’
– ‘Get In Touch’
– ‘Speak To Us’
It is also important to make sure your contact page is linked to on the main or secondary navigation menu of your website as well as in the footer of your website.
An effective contact page is an essential component of any website. Using these pointers will help to increase your conversion rate and foster trust with your prospects.
Do you have questions about the design of your contact page, or perhaps your website in general? Get in touch with Mackman today by calling 01787 388038. Alternatively, email customerservice@mackmangroup.co.uk. We would be delighted to discuss your options with you in more detail.