Conversion in Action: A Real Life Look at the Purchasing Process

If you’re selling online, you have one end goal: Conversion.

But getting to the point of conversion doesn’t just happen because your visitor clicked your ad or organically landed on your site.

Conversion is a complex process that involves multiple touch-points and various factors that must be considered in order to create an effective sales funnel, whether you’re selling software or silk.

To show you what I mean, I’d like to walk you through one of my most recent online purchases.

My journey starts with me at the top of the funnel and goes all the way down to the point of conversion where I bought not one, but two items, from a company that, up until recently, I didn’t even know existed.

Want the juicy details?

Jump into my time machine and I’ll take you back to a few weeks ago when this all went down…

Stage 1: Unaware / Pain Aware

My purchasing journey begins with an invitation to a holiday party.

After assessing the options in my closet, it’s clear that I’ll need something new so I can feel confident and attractive at the upcoming shindig.

At the moment, the party is far away, so I’m not really thinking about it. This “new outfit” is more of a subconscious desire, not a serious “need.” I’m not actively looking for a solution.

Checkpoint: Where am I in the sales funnel?

Right now, I’m vacillating between “Unaware” (I’m not aware of the solution yet) and “Pain Aware” (I still don’t have an outfit for the upcoming party).

Stage 2: Product / Solution Aware, Medium Intent

One day, I’m on Instagram and I see an ad for a new clothing brand I’ve never heard of before.

I like what I see, so I swipe through the ad images until I see something I really like. I’m curious, so I click the “Shop now” banner just to check things out.

After clicking the ad, I find myself on a landing page featuring images of the product, a description, price, and similar items I might like. There’s even a special “15% off” offer.

As I take a closer look, the dress is nicer than I thought — it’s silk and the pattern is unique. And the best part? The price point isn’t too steep.

Out of curiosity, I click on some of the other items on the site to see if there’s anything else I might like better. I see a skirt that really catches my eye in the same abstract pattern.

After looking over the skirt, checking the materials, and seeing a reasonable price tag, I’m thinking this could be a good option for my new party outfit.

But the party is far away. The brand is new to me. I might find something I like better. So I click out of the site and go on with my day.

Checkpoint: Where am I in the sales funnel?

At this point, I’m “Product Aware” because I now know that this specific skirt is ONE POSSIBLE SOLUTION to my problem and “Medium Intent” (because I don’t need the skirt right now and I’ve never bought from this company before so it’s not an “instant yes”).

Stage 3: Most Aware, High Intent

Over the next couple of weeks, the party starts creeping up, so I start actively looking on various sites for potential outfit options.

I see a few things that I like, but I’m still not ready to pull the trigger yet. Again, I click out of the various options I’ve been looking at and go back to work.

As I’m working, I notice a display ad in the sidebar of my screen showing the exact skirt I was looking at a week or so earlier.

I click the ad and head back to the skirt.

Back on the Amour Vert site, I re-review the product description and price and see that it’s on sale. I also notice some new testimonials for the skirt and see that some of the sizes are out of stock.

Then I see the reminder about the “15% off” offer.

Given the fact that…

(1) I like the skirt — a lot

(2) The skirt is on sale

(3) I get a 15% off discount as a first-time shopper

(4) Others like the skirt and it seems to be going fast, so if I want it, I better act now

(5) My party is approaching quickly and I need something to wear

…It’s enough for me to toss out those “other options” I was considering and take a chance on this new brand I’ve never bought from before.

Checkpoint: Where am I in the sales funnel?

I am now “Most Aware,” “High Intent” — I’ve officially made it to the bottom of the sales funnel.

I purchase the skirt (and the top!) as I officially “solve my pain” and become a customer. Here I am at home trying it on — as you can tell from my smile, I like it!

Let’s review

As you can can see, there’s are many factors that go into conversion.

In my story alone, there were 10 different factors that contributed to me buying the items, including:

• Specific need (upcoming party)
• High-quality product
• Original price point (not out of reach)
• Awareness ad (touch-point 1)
• Time (2 weeks)
• Retargeted ad (touch-point 2)
• Discounted price
• Special offer for first-time customers (15% off)
• Social proof (testimonials)
• Scarcity (seeing items out of stock)

If you take any of those factors or touch-points away, the purchase may have never occurred, which just goes to show you how complex and delicate the whole buying process is.

If you’re selling online and not seeing results, it’s possible that you haven’t considered all of the the “key factors” that influence your visitors, from touch-points to persuasion tactics, and everything in between.

If this sounds like you, start by asking yourself:

• Where are my customers in the sales funnel?
• At which stage of the customer journey am I losing people?
• Am I presenting the right information and offers at the right time?
• Does my shopping experience match my visitor’s mindset?

If you need help answering the questions above or you’d like to develop tactics to improve your conversion, comment below or reach out any time: annie1maguire@gmail.com.