You’ve lovingly created your sales page and checkout, but something’s not working and those sales aren’t coming.

This blog post is for you if your data is telling you that people click through to the checkout page but do not follow through to complete the transaction.

Let’s start by looking at why someone would click through to the checkout page, but not make the purchase:

1 - They did not yet have the intention to buy at the point where they clicked on the link to the checkout page = Sales Page Problems

Or

2 - They did have the intention to buy when they left the sales page, but something stopped them from completing the transaction = Checkout Page Problems

Or

3 - They’re having a nosey around your business - and we’re not going to worry about these folks because a) That’s a totally normal thing that I’m pretty sure we all do at some point, and b) there won’t be enough of those people to skew your stats, so if you’re seeing a trend of lower-than-expected checkout conversions, yes there may be some looky-lous going on there, but mostly it’ll be down to groups 1 and 2.

Sales Page Problems And How To Fix Them

The job of your sales page is to help the visitor decide if they would like to buy this thing or not.

If someone clicks on the button to go through to the checkout page before they have formed any intention to buy, it’s probably because they’ve gone in search for more information.

So what information is missing on your sales page that they are hoping to find on the checkout page?

For example:

How much? It’s totally up to you whether you put your price on the sales page or not. But if you don’t, you can be pretty confident that a good proportion of the people who have clicked through to the checkout have done so in search of the price.

Where and when? If the thing you’re selling has any sort of live component, please make it clear on the sales page when it’ll be available and/or when and where the customer is expected to show up. You may think that everyone in your audience knows you deliver everything over Zoom, but people want to be 1000% sure of what they’re buying before they hand over payment details so do not leave them to guess anything at all.

Is a payment plan available and what does it look like? If you don’t mention a payment plan, then people will click through to the checkout page to see if there is one. If you do say ‘payment plan available’ but don’t give the details, people will click through to see the frequency and size of payments.

Bad news: If they go to your checkout page in search of information that they need, and then they still don’t buy, they probably didn’t find that information there either.

3 questions to help you improve your checkout page conversion:

1 - Is there any information squirreled away on your checkout page that should be displayed on your sales page instead (or in addition)

2 - Is there any information a buyer would need to have to be able to confidently make the purchase, but is absent from your sales page and your checkout page?

3 - How can you make it really easy for potential customers to get the information they need? Do you have an FAQs section? Have you made it easy for them to ask you questions (I use a chat function called Chatra - that’s an affiliate link).

Checkout Page Problems And How To Fix Them

The job of your checkout page is to make it really easy for the visitor to follow through with the purchase decision they have ALREADY made (thanks to your magnificent sales page).

If someone clicks through to your checkout page, eager to buy your thing and then doesn’t complete the transaction, something has got in their way…..like…

They don’t feel totally convinced that this checkout process will deliver that thing they already decided they wanted - There’s some kind of mismatch between the information, the look and feel, the level of trust, that’s made them throw on the brakes. They may even be toggling between the sales page and checkout page trying to double-check they’re paying the right person for the right thing.

There’s new information on the checkout page – And now they need to take that in re-process it and reconsider their decision.

They don’t love your payment options – Maybe you’re asking for a big lump sum without a call. Maybe you only offer Paypal and they’re not a fan. Maybe it’s only a tiny payment and they can’t be bothered to drag themselves off the sofa to hunt down their card and key in the details.

They’re not comfortable with the amount of required information – And by that I mean - TELEPHONE NUMBERS - yes I am shouting. I don’t want to give anyone my telephone number ever. My phone is for accessing social media and videoing my cats. It is not for receiving phone calls.

Some life happened – The cat walked on their keyboard, a delivery driver knocked on the door, a child wandered into the room to talk at them….. something happened that stopped them from completing the checkout process and it’s nothing to do with your checkout page.

4 more questions to help you improve your checkout page conversion:

4. Is the information on the checkout page consistent with the information on the sales page?
This is a tough one for you to check because you are so familiar with the product your eyes will tell you what your brain already knows. It can help to:
* Ask a friend to check for you
* Write a checklist of essential info you want both the sales page and checkout page to convey, and then check each item off for each page
* Have the sales page open on your computer and the checkout page on your phone (or vice versa) because the different presentations will make your brain pay attention a bit more, and make inconsistencies easier to spot.

5. Are you making it as easy as possible to pay? Consider the payment handlers and payment plan options. You need to also consider your own boundaries and what you are comfortable with.

6. Is every question essential? Ask the customer to do as little as possible to complete the checkout. If there is any other information you would like, but could wait until after the purchase is complete because it’s a nice-to-have, then save it for the thank you page, or follow-up email.

7. How can you reconnect with people who abandon the checkout process?
Could you install a Facebook pixel onto your checkout page so you can pick up data about who has visited the page and target them with Facebook Ads to remind them to complete the purchase, or to ask you questions?

Can you ask for their email address first and set up an automation that emails people who abandon the cart and reminds them to complete the process.

If you can’t be that targeted, how would you feel about making a broader more public statement on social media or to your email list like:

X people abandoned the checkout process this week. Was that you? Life happens. Here’s how you complete the process, or where to send your questions if you need answers.

Lots of people will see that who haven’t even been on your sales page yet, so you might want to also include a link back to the sales page for the curious

That’s A Wrap

Remember a few minutes spent tightening up your checkout page and process could generate a far bigger increase in sales than hours spent creating new marketing content.

Make sure you are maximizing the potential of the visitors you already have before investing time and money in bringing in more people.

Where would you like to go next?

Aligned Persuasion Method (free)