Still sending users to catalog pages? These 2 tactics have much higher ROI.

A user searches for “running shoes”. They send them to a page with a zillion of running shoes. A user searched for “hotel for vacation in Turkey”. They land on a page with a ton of choices.

The users need to dig through options, compare. Not all of them even know what exactly to look for, what factors to compare. And, they get distracted constantly. Modern users browse from a smartphone in 95% of cases these days – it’s so inconvenient to dig through catalogs and filters on these devices.

Though, a lot of advertisers still go for this outdated inefficient practice. Why? Because it’s convenient – catalog pages are already there. Just set up a campaign and pour the traffic. But what are the chances they will use the filters, dig through the catalog? Tiny. As well as the conversion rate. A user is more likely to close the tab than to call and ask questions. Result: low ROI of campaigns.

What to try instead

Option 1 – just give them the best variant you have

Instead of making a user digging through your catalogs, just present them the best option you have for them. Instead of showing them a ton of running shoes, send them to a detailed page with your best-selling model. And design the landing page well – your generic product description page might not be enough for this.

Case study 1

Client: an aggregator of clinics for treatment abroad. They offer tens of clinics for any disease in tens of countries.

  • Old approach: a user is searching for “hair transplantation in Mexico” and we sent them to a page with clinics in Mexico that offer the appropriate services. The user then had to figure out, which clinic and doctor is the best option for them.
  • New approach: sending people to the best-selling offer of the best-selling clinic. The landing page contains all the details of the procedure, features a specific price of the procedure, a specific doctor.

Results:

I tested a similar approach with a shop of medical appliances many years ago. The results were similar.

Option 2: walk them through to the best offer via a chatbot or quiz

In some cases, the previous solution isn’t applicable. You need to figure out the needs of the user first and only then you can come up with a tailored solution. Don’t waste your sales manager’s time and nerves on communications with cold prospects. Set up a chatbot that will ask all the basic questions and pass the info to your sales team. In a lot of cases, the latter step is not even needed – the user might get all the needed info from your bot and just buy on your website.

Case study 2

Client: water purifiers’ shop.

Challenges:

  • low CR on catalog pages
  • low margin on the most popular brands
  • “complex” product – a prospect usually doesn’t know, what solution they are looking for exactly. The first call to business is just about getting basic consultation – the info a bot could provide.

Solution

Instead of sending a user to a catalog with many products, we send a user to a chatbot in the messenger of their choice. A user answers basic questions via the chat and the bot offers the best product for their needs, budget, and situation in general. The product offered is the best option for both: the user and the business. The price is right for the user AND the margin is good for business.

Results

  • The conversion rate to a sale is more than 3x higher compared to campaigns that send a user to a catalog page.
  • Profit is more than 6x higher because of the higher profit margin of the products offered.
  • The workload on sales managers has been decreased too, though, we didn’t have the right tools to measure the exact numbers. Even when users call for a consultation, they are “hot” leads – they got all the basic info from the chatbot already.