You’ve done the hard work: built the website, added your products, maybe even thrown a few dollars at ads. But if you’re still wondering why the sales aren’t flowing, it might be time to ask a harder question:

Is your website actually doing its job?

Emily Fitton from Punch Buggy has been building and optimising websites for more than a decade. She doesn’t just make things look good – she makes sure they work. And she’s got one key message for small business owners:

“You can pay for thousands of people to come to your site with ads, but if it doesn’t convert when they get there, it’s a complete waste of money.”

Here’s what Emily says every small business should know about turning traffic into sales.

One of the biggest mistakes small businesses make? Designing for what they like, not what their customers respond to. That’s where A/B testing comes in.

“You might really hate that pop-up… but they work. Customers say they don’t like them, but their behaviour tells a different story.”

A/B testing (or split testing) is about trying small changes – like a different button colour, or new headline – to see which version gets better results. It works across:

• Google and Meta ads

• Email subject lines (especially for abandoned cart emails)

• Website copy, layouts and checkout flows

And you don’t need to change everything at once. In fact, you shouldn’t.

“The most important thing is to only test one element at a time. Otherwise, you won’t know what actually caused the improvement”, Emily confirms.

If your website doesn’t have Google Analytics set up properly, you’re flying blind. Emily sees it all the time: multiple tags, broken tracking, missing funnel steps.

“We use analytics to see where people drop off. Are they getting stuck at the shipping page? Abandoning the cart? You’ve got to know where the problem is before you can fix it.”

And it’s not just Google Analytics. Emily recommends also using tools like:

• Microsoft Clarity (free heatmaps and session recordings)

• VWO (Visual Website Optimiser for detailed testing)

• Shopify analytics (plus Google Analytics layered on top)

Once the data’s in place, that’s when the real work begins.

“We come up with hypotheses – if we move the free shipping message up the page, will more people add to cart? Then we test it. That’s how real growth happens.”

Think your Facebook ad led to that sale? Google might say it was them. And if you used both, they’ll both claim it.

“We see it all the time. Facebook and Google will both try to take credit for the same sale. That’s why you can’t rely on one platform’s analytics – you need a clear, independent view of what’s really working.”

This matters, especially when you’re paying for ads. Emily’s tip? Compare multiple sources. And don’t assume the biggest number means the best return.

Sometimes it’s just a tweak. A new call-to-action. Moving your returns policy higher up the page. Changing “Buy Now” to “Get Started.”

“When we redesign websites, we don’t touch the stuff that’s working. We only fix what’s broken.”

Small changes can lead to big wins. Especially if your current site has never had a proper audit – or worse, was built without data in mind.

“Sometimes business owners don’t know what’s going wrong because it’s never actually gone right. That’s where we start.”

Want more from Emily?

Join the Buddez community to access Emily’s full workshop and learn how to optimise your website, emails and ads for more conversions and less guesswork.