Landing Page Makeover Clinic #26: iGrowKids.com.au

This is another addition to our ongoing series of tutorials and case studies on landing pages that work.

Karen Omerod wants babies to be more comfy and parents less hassled dressing them. She’s designed an adorable line of yoga-styled, easy on/easy off, tops and bottoms. What’s not so cute is that Karen’s sales are poor.

She understands her market and has tested a little advertising, but not much is happening. Let’s see what we can do to get more babies into IGrowKids togs.

• The Goal: Generate 2 sales per day by May 2010.
• The Problem: Less than 2 sales per week currently.
• The Current Landing Page (homepage): http://www.igrowkids.com.au
• Value: $28.95 including shipping (AUS $)

The Maven’s 10-Point Critique

Click image for larger view

#1 — Get visitors directly to what you’re selling. Clarify your navigation.

Dump the splash page. It stops your visitor’s momentum in the search/shop process and forces them to read when what they want to do is browse and shop your clothing line.

Also, do not use the “makes-my-eyes-go-crazy”, black and white striped background and too-clever icons. You want clear, obviously labeled, and intuitive navigation links. I found myself irritated having to click each icon to figure out what they were about. Use recognizable social media icons, as well, for the same reasons.

Click image for larger view

#2 — Think like a bakery. Get your tasty goods upfront for a wide variety of buyers.

I’ve provided a basic e-commerce template that shows what I mean. Break out the goods and get them on a rainbow of smiling babies, toddlers and young kids. Your establishing image could be seasonal or reflect a holiday. Use the other boxes to showcase a testimonial, a special offer, sizing info, and/or useful news and information.

#3 — Invest in your imagery on the homepage and product pages.

Quality images are the key to clothing sales. Your visitors are going to look at your homepage photos and decide in 2-3 seconds if you’re a quality place with quality clothes. You need to show the clothes on the kids so moms and grandmas can imagine their little ones in them, too.

For the product pages, you can show one child wearing a sample and then the rest of the colors as mini swatches. (Ideally, it would be great to show the pants change color on the kid models but that may be more technology, time and cost than you may want to invest right now.)

Ask your Facebook fans for pix of their kids wearing your clothes and get them on your pages. (Make sure you get all the proper permissions and don’t display personal info.)

#4 — Focus on your value proposition more strongly.

“Simply less fuss” is a good start but, again, lacks the clarity and specificity you want here. I’d suggest:

Perfectly easy fashion for kids who dig comfort.

This simple declaration will appeal to moms and dads who want their kids to look good and feel comfortable — yet want clothes that are easy to manage at diaper-changing time and on laundry day.

#5 — Capture your visitors’ hearts and imaginations with a strong headline.

Why are your visitors there? What are they looking for? Maybe it’s simple like a “Summer Madness Sale” or a little less emphatic — “Little Girls Welcome Spring in their I Grow Skirts.” Your headline, like your establishing image, will and should change through the selling year.

Click image for larger view

#6 — Rethink your navigational scheme.

I’ve already discussed the “rebus” navigation icons you’re currently using. Well, after you dump them, please move the primary navigation to the top where visitors expect it to be. Then let’s rework the content based on those core points all prospective customers care about. I’ve identified primary navigation links and secondary.

What are you selling? [TOGS]

• Who are you? [ABOUT US]
• Blog & Connections

How do I order? [ORDER INFO]

What about special requests? [FAQ]

• Who else has ordered from you? [RAVES!]
• Is my personal information safe and my privacy protected? [PRIVACY POLICY]

How do I contact you? [CONTACT US]

What if I don’t like it? [RETURNS & REFUNDS]

You can lump order/shipping info and returns/refunds under CUSTOMER CARE. However you ultimately organize and title the links in your navigation bar, make them clear and obvious.

#7 — Reorganize your product pages.

Save the general info about I Grow Kids clothes somewhere else. Product pages should sell and offer specific details about the product itself. For example, on your Pants page, I’d write a headline like: “Snazzy, easy wear pants for boys and girls bring smiles!”

Then concentrate on pants details: fabric, measurements, colors, etc. I might also add a testimonial and a link to sizing instructions or a visitor-initiated pop-up with useful details. Get the calls to action higher on the page.

Lastly, change “Buy Now” to “Add to Cart” — folks are still shopping and thinking. Don’t rush ’em. 🙂

#8 — Make prospects feel comfortable and confident about doing business with you.

Moms love entrepreneur mom stories — tell yours! Share where you’ve advertised — link to those sites. Be more aggressive with social media — ask prospects to connect with you.

Add “Reviews” to your product pages. Chase customers for their testimonials. Offer $5 discount codes to customers who do. Reviews/testimonials are super important to fence-sitting prospects.

#9 — Make it easy for shoppers to find what they need fast.

Everyone shops differently — by sex, by product, by color, by size, by price, etc. Make it easy for them and organize accordingly with mini-search boxes. Add a site-wide search box that displays on every page and a sitemap, too.

#10 — Do the SEO to generate organic search engine rankings

SEO is all about using the words, terms, and phrases that your prospects use. The key is to find the sweet spot where your niche customer finds your niche store.

Here’s your current homepage meta “title”:

<title>iGrow Kids Clothes. Yoga & ballet-inspired clothing for baby, toddler and junior boys and girls</title>

If you want to generate more traffic, you need to know what your best prospects are looking for and put those phrases first in your <title> tags. Here’s one way:

<title>Comfortable, Easy Fit, Yoga-Inspired Child’s Tops and Bottoms :: IGrow Kids</title>

You’ll want to do your keyword research to identify those phrases that generate the kind of customers you want. You want the crunchy granola moms? Focus on organic and Yoga. Want moms like me who want everything easy? Focus on terms that communicate easy-peasy. Want moms who appreciate value? Focus on words that are all about long-wear, value, never outgrow, etc.

Remember to give each page its own title and meta description.

There’s a lot more to learn about SEO. But you’ll be amazed at how effective just adjusting the titling can be.

BONUS: I never reinvent the wheel unless I’m forced to. I always suggest to my clients they find technology that does a good chunk of the work for them, especially when they’re first starting out, so they can concentrate on business and not site-building. There are a ton of decent e-commerce solutions available to you, including WordPress CMS and few plug-ins. Take a look around and see if there isn’t a turn-key system that could do a lot of the heavy lifting for you.

My thanks to Karen Ormerod for her support of Heifer International. Look for my next makeover in about 4 weeks.

Want your own Copywriting Maven landing page makeover?

Got a landing page that’s more poop than pop? Need to get better results from your online marketing?

If you’re interested in a private page makeover, site audit, or other services, please email Roberta directly.