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How to make your show website a year-round attendee growth factory
Your event website is the 365 days-a-year shop window to your event . ASP reveals how conversion rate optimisation can give you that competitive edge in the online marketplace
When Joni Mitchell penned the words ‘ you don ’ t know what you ’ ve got , til it ' s gone ,’ in her hit Big Yellow Taxi , the Canadian folk singer probably didn ’ t have exprom and visprom marketing strategies in mind . However , she was reflecting upon missed opportunities , which is something that keeps many exhibition marketers awake at night .
Marketing teams throughout the exhibition industry work their socks off to execute their marketing strategies in a bid to reach and even exceed their targets .
From PPC , social and email campaigns to digital advertising - all of these activities drive traffic to your website in the hope that you can convert that initial interest into a ticket , stand and sponsorship sales . Your event website is the centre of your show ’ s digital universe . But what if your website is slightly out of kilter with your target audience and missing multiple conversion opportunities ? If you don ’ t have a website that is converting , your marketing strategy won ’ t be achieving the value it deserves .
Leading event website and attendee and exhibitor growth specialists ASP , reveal how conversion rate optimisation ( CRO ) can help event organisers improve their cost per visitor , and get a better return on PPC while converting more web traffic into valuable leads , sales and registrations .
What is CRO ? The purpose of CRO is to improve the likelihood of visitors taking a desired action on a webpage . This typically involves A / B testing elements like colour , wording , content and navigational elements of your website to see what gets the best results . Through CRO you can find out what colours , wording , UX and CTA positioning will truly unlock higher conversion rates for your show .
True Colours It ’ s hard to believe , but did you know your show could be missing out on key sponsorship revenue and visitors just because the call to action button on your website is the wrong colour ?
In a recent A / B testing we carried out with Informa Tech ’ s Ai Summit , we found that if the organiser changed its CTA button from black to orange , it would get over a 25 per cent increase in visitors clicking through to the ticketing page . A massive uplift .
What colour is right for your show ? While high-contrast colours will pop , low-contrast analogous colours ( ones with a more subtle tonal change ) may prove more eye-catching .
The only way of really knowing is by using an event marketer ’ s secret weapon ; conversion rate optimisation ( CRO ).
Picture Perfect - Subliminal Stimuli We often make decisions in our everyday lives because of subliminal stimuli . When it comes to events , how many times have you gone onto a show website and seen an image of a busy bustling show floor ? Every website , right ?
But ask yourself this ; is it a good image to make someone want to go to your tradeshow ? For an exhibitor , the likely subliminal message they receive from this picture is big crowds = a successful show . So the busy scene is good for an exhibitor page on your website . However , for a visitor , an image of exciting content is more likely to subliminally make them more eager to buy that ticket and attend . CRO allows you to test your imagery to ensure your website is pictureperfect .
UX Appeal CRO is also a brilliant way of ensuring your user experience ( UX ) is right for your audience . UX refers to the overall experience that a person has while visiting a website . It encompasses the website interaction between a show and its current or potential visitors and exhibitors .
At ASP , our research on UX in event websites found that potential visitors to a show make up their minds on whether they like that show or not in 2.6 seconds . Clearly , first impressions count . Potential visitors and exhibitors demand an easy , efficient , and fast user experience on your event website . Therefore , good UX is a key cornerstone to converting web traffic into money on the bottom line .
52 — Autumn