Even with advancements in technology such as apps on your smartphone to find the best place to eat, drink or shop, it is still better to speak with a live person who can answer your questions in real time. Live phone calls are still the most used channel for researching and purchasing, with tons of mobile searchers telling us that they tap or click a call a number directly from search results in order to connect with a business. As a crucial part of today’s business market, it is very important to understand when, how and why consumers use the simple click to call button feature that we have come to know and love.

Customers rely on calls for research and transactions

Click to call is important to customers and clientele across all business platforms. For example, whether you are looking for travel agents, restaurants, auto services, shopping malls or a place to buy a new phone, click to call is an extremely important feature for people who are trying to locate information and/or make a purchase. Customers rely on calls for research and transactions. Calls commencing from the search results page are extremely valuable for businesses of all types. Research suggests that most of the calls produced by mobile search ads are not hasty informational calls, but instead are more functional research or business calls.

Improve the efficiency of advertising with a click to call button

Adding click to call can also improve the efficiency of an ad, whether it is due to clients feeling more positive about your business or because of the superior size of the ad due to the added call button. On average, advertisers who use AdWords that carry the click to call button see an increase in click rates of their ads. The call button also helps to influence brand perception. The power to call a business directly from the search results not only makes the consumer feel more in control, but also helps to encourage a purchase. It is also an important factor in the opinion of a brand or business.

Furthermore, brands and businesses should calculate and give value to the calls brought on by their advertising. Using AdWords, businesses can now gauge calls as conversions allowing them to assign worth and importance to calls that their ads drive.

If you are not using click to call in your online advertising you will be losing significant business because you can be sure that more savvy competitors will be.   With over 40 million calls generated by Google ads each month can you afford not to include a click to call button in your online marketing campaigns?

Speak to a Numagoo online marketing advisor today!

As a Manchester based Web Design Agency we like to keep our clients up to date on the latest digital marketing trends and we think this information is particularly useful for businesses that are considering a new responsive or mobile friendly website for e-commerce.

In a recent survey commissioned by Google and conducted by Nielsen, some interesting facts emerged about the mobile shopping path that consumers take when using their smartphones. 950 smartphone users participated in the survey and Google monitored their behaviour throughout the shopping process encompassing purchases of electronics, food and cooking, automotive, travel, health and nutrition, apparel and beauty, finance, home and garden and also from restaurants.

The results revealed:

Research on mobile – Consumers spent more than 15 hours each week in research of mobile sites and applications. They visited websites an average of 6 times during the purchasing process.

Search – 48 percent of consumers began their research for mobile shopping utilising search engines, a lot more than those who used branded apps or websites.

Location matters – 69 percent of mobile shoppers chose businesses that were within 5 miles of their own location.

Rapid purchase is important: 55 percent of consumers wanted to buy within an hour and 83 percent within 24 hours.

Mobile influences the channels used for purchases – Of consumers who purchased after conducting research on their smartphones, 82 percent made their purchase in-store, 45 percent purchased online from a desktop or tablet and 17 percent bought from their mobile.

Sales of smartphones double year on year and there is no doubt that mobile-savvy shoppers are here to stay and purchasing from mobile phones will be an everyday occurrence.

How businesses can use these mobile shopping survey results

You can use these survey results to reach mobile consumers and increase purchasing from mobile phones in the following ways:

Ensure your website design is responsive

Today’s discerning online shoppers expect mobile friendly websites to be available to them.  Initially, you will need to analyse how your customers interact with your site at the moment, which pages they are visiting and what they are searching for.  With this information, you can define and create the type of responsive website you need to meet your customers’ requirements.

Tailor your search ads for mobile shoppers

Since search is the normal starting point for mobile shoppers in conducting research about their prospective purchases, mobile advertisements are a must if you want to be found in this growing marketplace.   

Use location extensions so your customers can find you

Potential customers can immediately work out your location in relation to their own and get directions as to how to find your shop or office if you use location extensions e.g. placing your business address in your advertisements.

Create faster checkouts

Display up to date stock inventory with local product listing ads (PLAs), enable click to call and build rapid, flawless mobile checkout experiences so that your customers can find what they want and buy quickly.

Measure conversions across channels with cross-device conversion tracking

Customers buy using a variety of different channels, commonly beginning with research and then purchasing from mobile phones, in store or from their desktops.  You can better understand how mobile advertisements increase purchases by using the data you obtain through measuring conversions across channels with cross-device conversion tracking that begin with mobile research.

For more information on responsive web design and mobile friendly websites contact Numagoo here.