# What is Conversion rate?

> Conversion rate is the share of website visitors who do what you want, such as calling, sending an enquiry or booking, worked out as conversions divided by visitors.

- Source: https://nerdsharks.com/glossary/conversion-rate
- Publisher: Nerdsharks (Exeter, Devon, UK)
- Updated: 2026-09-26

Also called: CR, conversion, CRO, conversion rate optimisation.

A conversion is any action you count as a success: a phone call, a form submission, a booking, a WhatsApp message. If 400 people visit in a month and 12 get in touch, the conversion rate is 3%.

It tells you how well your website turns attention into enquiries. More visitors is only useful if a reasonable number of them get in touch.

To measure it, calls, forms and bookings need to be tracked, which usually means setting up events in Google Analytics or using a call-tracking number.

## Why it matters for a small business

Doubling your conversion rate brings the same number of new enquiries as doubling your traffic, and it is usually far cheaper to do. Clearer headlines, visible reviews and easier contact options often move it more than any amount of SEO.

**Example:** A carpet fitter adds a sticky tap-to-call bar and moves reviews up the page. Visitor numbers stay about the same, but calls from the website go up.