The contact page of a website can make or break conversions. If your visitor has had a good experience up until the point of visiting the contact page (would they still be on your site if they hadn’t?) and the contact page fails to generate that final “click”, a potential customer is gone, quite possibly forever.
It’s imperative that you encourage users to take that final step from casually interested, to fully engaged with your, or your client’s, company. An effective contact page will not only assist the visitor in bridging the gap, but may well be the final proof of quality they need to persuade them to do so.
Creating an effective contact page
Creating an effective contact page is a key process for most
sites, here are 9 elements to focus on, to ensure that the “send” button
doesn’t sit idle:
1) LIMIT THE NUMBER OF REQUIRED FIELDS
The more information you ask for from a user, the less
likely they are to complete a contact form. Only ever ask for the information
you absolutely need.
2) PLACE A BOUNDING BOX AROUND FORMS
By placing a bounding box around forms you make them easy to
identify at a glance, and help users gauge what parts of the page are
interactive.
3) EMBED GOOGLE MAPS
For bricks-and-mortar businesses, helping users find the
location is obviously beneficial. Even for online businesses, displaying a
physical location adds credibility.
4) ADD SOCIAL PROOF
Speaking of credibility, add elements that will give
customers confidence, such as testimonials, BBB emblems, the number of years
you’ve been in business, and so on.
5) ADD BRANDING
It might sound foolish, but most potential customers are
browsing numerous sites, often in multiple tabs. It pays to remind them exactly
who they’re about to contact.
6) GUIDE USER INPUT
Use UI elements like selects, and option fields, to guide
user input. The easier it is to give you the information you want, the more
likely it is you’ll get it.
7) KEEP IT SIMPLE
Simple always wins, especially on mobile. Remember that on
mobile, your form may need to be larger in order to be usable.
8) INCLUDE YOUR PHONE NUMBER
Many businesses don’t want to include a phone number because
they think they’ll be fielding calls all day. The reality is a phone number is
like Google maps, it gives you credibility and makes the customer feel safe
handing over their personal details.
9) ADD A PRIVACY STATEMENT
Add the guarantee that your company will keep users’ details
confidential. This builds trust.