Glossary / Conversion Rate
Conversion Rate
Conversion rate is the share of people who take the action you want. Divide the number who converted by the number who had the chance, then multiply by a hundred.
Work out yours
Conversion rate = conversions ÷ visitors or leads × 100
2.5%
About 40 people have to arrive for one to convert.
Why it matters
Conversion rate is the multiplier on every dollar you spend upstream. Doubling it halves your cost per customer without buying a single extra click, which is why fixing what happens after the click almost always beats buying more traffic.
Where people get it wrong
Measure the right denominator. Site-wide conversion rate is close to meaningless because it mixes people who came to read a blog post with people who came to buy. Measure the page that is meant to convert.
If this number is not where you want it
Most small business sites were built to exist rather than to convert. If people find you and then leave, more traffic just makes the leak bigger.
Website Build, from $500
See what it would take, free →About Website BuildRelated terms
- Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)Customer acquisition cost is what you spend, on average, to win one new customer.
- Payback PeriodPayback period is how long it takes a new customer to pay back what they cost to acquire.
- Average TicketAverage ticket is what a typical customer or job brings in before costs.
- Local VisibilityLocal visibility is how easily someone nearby can find you when they search for what you sell.
Common questions
+ What is a good conversion rate for a small business website?
For local service businesses, two to five percent of visitors taking an action is typical. If you are under one percent the problem is usually the page, not the traffic.
Part of the small business glossary. All six free calculators are here.