You believe in your product. You have a fantastic looking site. You are confident that both statements are true because you get steady, consistent traffic to your site. But what do your sales look like?

There’s “the rub”. How DOES one bridge the gap between web traffic and sales. As the old saying goes, “You can lead a horse to water…..” but how on earth how do you make your clients drink? err….. “buy”?

I found this article on the Wall Street Journal online. The basic idea: be proactive with your sales. Much like a physical “brick and mortar” store front, you’ll find greater returns by proactively recruiting sales. Granted, there is a fine line between a helpful “Can I get a fitting room started for you” and the persistent “Can I help you? You look like you have questions. Do you have questions? Let me answer your questions…”

How does one implement a proactive sales approach for an online store front? One way suggested by the article is to install a “click to call” feature on your website. When the client clicks the link, he or she is asked to enter a phone number. After submitting this information, the client then receives a phone call from sales staff. This provides a proactive and most importantly, unobtrusive, solution to creating a more proactive sales approach.

However, if you’re a smaller business that is still in the beginning phases, purchasing the software and implementing the call back system (can you say LONG DISTANCE?) may not be cost effective for your online store yet. A good compromise would be to install an “online chat”. This would allow you to initiate an online discussion with customers as they browse your products to answer any questions or concerns the client may have. There are numerous free online chat software providers, making this a significantly more cost effective way to implement a more proactive approach to your sales strategy.

**HINT** A great way to maximize the effectiveness of the online chat feature is to have a promotional code ready for clients who either initiate an online chat, or respond to an online chat that is initiated by a sales representative. By initiating the chat with a discount to offer your client, you come from a place of “helping” or “giving”, rather than a place of “BUY MY PRODUCT” which can be too aggressive for some potential buyers.

You can also utilize your live chat feature to inform clients about any “free samples”, “trial periods”, or other “try before you buy” offerings. This gives the client a “nothing to lose” scenario, removing the fear that the potential buyer may be investing in something that won’t work or something that he or she won’t care for. Of course, you and I know that because you have a solid product, the potential buyer will be so impressed that he or she will likely tell friends and family about it.
Thus, you’ve created a string of “word of mouth” referrals!

These are just some tips we’ve found in conducting our own marketing research. Now, SimpleHelix Asks YOU: How do YOU turn YOUR web traffic into sales?