4 Tips to Increase Conversions From Your Homepage

You may already know that collecting data about your customers’ preferences and using it to personalize product recommendations can help you see a conversion lift of about 5 percent. How can you see that conversion lift go up to almost 10 percent? Through a dedicated team of experts who work closely with each of your customers to craft recommendation and optimization techniques that work for your business.

Every industry and company is different, therefore so are their optimization techniques. That said, some things just seem to work every time.

Your homepage sets the stage for the overall site experience. The goal of your homepage is to give the shopper a compass to direct them through the site and to the right products for them. Shoppers that click through a product recommendation on the homepage are 20 percent more likely to convert than shoppers that don't. Here are four tips for getting those coveted clicks on your homepage:

1. Place recommendations "above the fold." Including recommendations near the top of the page gives shoppers increased visibility and encourages them to click through to the product page.

2. Include ratings and reviews. Adding ratings and reviews to each recommendation piques interest, encourages engagement and increases confidence in the purchase decision. This best practice holds true for every area of your site.

3. Personalize the experience using what you know about the shopper. For first-time visitors, use geo-targeted tactics like "Top-Rated Product in New York." For repeat customers, show products based on their viewing behavior, purchase history and demographic data. You can even personalize the header image on your homepage based on categories previously viewed.

4. Two is better than one. Promote two scenarios of recommendations on a page instead of just one. Run scenarios both vertically and horizontally.

Eric Tobias is the president of iGoDigital, a provider of personalization and product recommendation tools that guide smarter retail. Eric can be reached at tellmemore@igodigital.com.