It’s a part of being a small business owner that no one warns you about: You spend so much time and energy creating your brand-new offer. You’re stoked. You can’t wait for your product to fly off the (digital) shelves. You can’t wait for your calendar to get booked out. You can’t wait for your email list to fill up with new subscribers. And then…

Nothing.

Crickets.

DEAD. FUCKING. SILENCE.

Alas, your offer isn’t converting. No one’s buying, no one’s scheduling, no one’s subscribing.

But…why? What went wrong? What isn’t working?

Truth is, this shit happens to a lot of us out there, and it really sucks. But not all hope is lost! Chances are, there’s at least one reason (if not a few reasons) why your offer didn’t convert. Even better? There’s likely a solution to fix it.

Let’s break down some of the most common reasons your offer likely isn’t converting, and what you can do to make it better.

It’s all about you (and not your offer)

While we absolutely love when business owners brag on themselves, there’s a time and place when it works…and when it doesn’t. When it comes to your offer, it’s best to let the bragging take a backseat.Now, that’s not to say you shouldn’t tout how impressive you are. Your audiences want to know who they’re working with or buying from, after all. But, more often than not, the selling points of your offer will get buried within the content about you.

So, keep the content about yourself to a minimum, and instead, make sure your content highlights things like:

• The problems you/your offer can help them solve
• The potential results they can expect with your offer
• What sets your offer apart from anyone else’s

Remember: You want to talk to them, not at them. Empathize with your audiences, let them know you truly understand where they’re at, and help them envision a better future because of your offer.

Your CTA isn’t clear enough

Your CTA – or call to action – is exactly that. You need to call on your audiences to take an action on your offer. In other words: What is it you want them to do next? Maybe that looks like:

• Subscribing to your emails
• Scheduling a call with you
• Downloading a freebie
• Signing up for a webinar
• Registering for an event
• Enrolling in a course

See where we’re going with this? Make it explicitly clear what you want your audiences to do. And, for the love of God Beyonce, please take phrases like ‘click here’ and ‘learn more’ to the dumpster. They are vague, actionless, and – quite frankly – just bad.

Also, make sure you balance your CTAs throughout your text! Some people may want to take action after a couple of paragraphs, while others will want every nitty-gritty detail about your offer. Either way, enhance their experience on your website and/or landing pages by making it easier for them to take that next (actionable!) step.

It’s not optimized well

Point blank: If your website and landing pages aren’t optimized well, users aren’t going to convert. Why? Because a lack of optimization makes it that much harder for audiences to even reach that point. Here’s what we mean:

• Your site isn’t mobile-friendly. Most audiences consume content on the go. If your site isn’t formatted or designed for mobile devices, users are going to dump you real fast.
• Your site takes too long to load. People are impatient AF. In fact, around 25% of users will leave your site if it takes longer than four seconds to load. So, make sure you test your site speed often and make any necessary updates to improve load times.
• Your site isn’t easy to find. A lack of keywords and SEO optimizations can be hindering your online visibility. Make sure you’re using the right keywords and phrases and following best SEO copywriting practices to capture the interest of those looking for you!
• Your site isn’t easy to read. If you bog your audiences down with giant paragraphs of text, they’ll be over it in a matter of seconds. Remember: We don’t read the same way online as we do books and articles. We scan for information – we want to find the most relevant content as quickly as possible. So, make sure you’re using headers (like H1s, H2s, H3s, etc.), have short paragraphs, use bulleted lists where appropriate, and break up sections of text with photos, videos, infographics, GIFs, or CTAs.
• Your site isn’t secure. These days, browsers will inform users immediately if a site isn’t secure. As a result, your trustworthiness as a brand crashes harder than bros who invest in cryptocurrency. If you want audiences to convert, make sure they know that their personal information is safe and secure in your hands.
• Your site isn’t designed well. Users can see right through a shitty web design. And it’s likely to leave a bad taste in their mouths. If you’re not a web designer, that’s okay! Find someone who is, or invest in products and tools that can help you create a professional website without shelling out tons of time and money (like our friends over at Bluchic!).

You’re not promoting it across platforms

We know first-hand that selling stuff online can feel…spammy. But we’re here to tell you that your offer can’t convert if no one even knows about it, right?!

Seriously, don’t limit yourself to just one tactic or platform to promote your offer, especially in a space that’s already saturated. You need to make yourself stand out in a crowd, and that goes for every. damn. crowd. Here’s what that might look like:

• Social media (Posts, Reels, Stories, Videos, Lives, etc.)
• Emails + newsletters
• Cross promotions within your other offers, like webinars, courses, and podcasts
• Cross promotions with others you’ve collaborated with
• Leveraging your affiliate program to get the word out

When it comes to promoting your offer, say it with us: The limit does not exist. 

You’re not warming audiences up first

There’s a reason unsolicited phone calls don’t work these days (besides not wanting to talk to, like, anyone). It’s because audiences are cold. And no, we don’t mean shivering cold. We mean they’re cold to your offer – they have no idea what the fuck it even is or why they should care.

Well, get this: The same goes for your online audiences.

You can’t just throw your offer out to a cold audience and expect them to convert right away. You need to warm them up first with some kickass pre-launch content! Which also means giving yourself more of a runway before your launch. Here are some ways you can do just that:

• Promote your offer ahead of time – anywhere from 2-3 weeks.
• Create warm-up email sequences to showcase what’s to come
• Strengthen your pitch with elements like testimonials and case studies
• Sweeten the deal with an exclusive discount or bonus offer
• Create a sense of urgency by creating a narrow window for your offer (like limiting your enrollment window to a few days, setting an expiration date on a promo code, etc.)

With this tactic, you’re essentially giving your audiences the stepping stones towards conversion instead of asking them to show up without any directions.

And when you’re ready to build the road to sweet, sweet conversion, we’re ready to help! Content strategy, content writing, email sequences, social media…at Uncanny Content, you can sit with us. Or schedule a call with Latasha. Either way, we’re excited to show you what we’ve got.