Some traffic sources convert better than others. You might get a 10% conversion rate from JV partner traffic and 1% from banner ad traffic. That’s normal, but…
…Recently I made an interesting discovery about two wildly different conversion rates from the SAME source, Twitter.
I’ve been experimenting with a Twitter traffic system with some success. I’ve been able to get hundreds of clicks in a day without too much effort.
I’m excited about that. But it’s also important to monitor the conversion rates of that traffic.
Right now there are two ways I get traffic from Twitter: 1) links within tweets themselves and 2) a link in the bio of my profile.
Both links go to the same squeeze page, but the two links have wildly different conversion rates.
When people click on the link in my bio, the conversion rate is DOUBLE that of clicks from promotional tweets.
Why? I’m always careful when making assumptions. But I can offer a guess.
My guess is similar to a post I just read on the Internet Business Box blog titled “Sales Letters vs. Blogs.”
Their theory is that people resist being sold to. Copywriters are taught this as well.
The author believes that when people are allowed to click around and control the shopping experience, they are more likely to buy. It’s an interesting experiment and I look forward to seeing how it works out.
So what’s the difference between the two conversions coming from Twitter?
Links that appear in Tweets come off as advertisements that the reader responds too. They’re being sold to and they know it.
But when a visitor clicks a link in the bio, they may feel like THEY’RE initiating the shopping experience. They may feel more in control and feel less resistance to the offer.
It’s just a guess, but I think a good one.
What do you think, is there a better explanation for the difference in conversion rates from nearly the same source?
Here’s a theory that adds to your theory.
When people are looking at your profile page, they are actually investigating you. They want to know if you’re someone who deserves to be followed.
A tweet is different. Even though a person may be “following” you, every tweet you send is an interruption. So most followers are probably not actively looking for your tweets.
This may be why the conversion rate is better from profile pages: The person is seeking you out instead of you seeking your followers out.
Hey Ryan, thanks for expanding. I think that’s exactly right.
Hmm… do you think a person has less sales resistance if they approach a salesman rather than being approached?
Or do you think an increase in sales may be entirely explained by the fact that the person was obviously interested when approaching?
I’m sorry if I am distracted away from the discussion at hand. I just realized that I don’t think I even have a link in my bio!
Yikes!
Thanks Stephen for the link!
Interesting. I love these counter-intuitive results.
I’ve had similar experiences. People like to buy but don’t like to be sold to.I think it’s a mixture of both not being sold to + the prospect prequalifying himself already by looking at your bio.
But it is not a big qualifier. I personally like to also click on people’s bios when I don’t know them and follow the links, just because I’m curious as to who they are. It really all depends on what’s in your bio+how trustable you look once they land on your blog/site/whatever.
My theory is that the profile bio establishes credibility and trust. By the time they read your pitch, theyre already warmed up to it. (They convinced themselves by making judgements about you already because you seem legit and solid).
My 2 cents
I think it’s like a product. When we buy something, we wanted to know who created that product. So we get more interest in knowing the producers, that’s why the conversion rate is double. Honestly I just started working out on my twitter. 🙂