CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) was born from the need of ecommerce sites to effectively track and improve their websites’ results and generate more leads that will translate into higher quality sales. This strategy is impactful for many businesses and B2B branding can easily benefit from this methodology by understanding how to utilize this important technology.
A conversion rate is defined by the percentage of website visitors who complete a certain task or goal that the owner is seeking to accomplish. CRO is often viewed as being synonymous with a site’s “bounce rate” or the percentage of visitors who leave a site after viewing it for a short period of time, only to stop at one page or do nothing while there.
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By the Letters
There are several methods in measuring the successes and failures of a website, but the easiest, most common and useful approach is through A/B testing. The A/B experiment pits once version (A) against another example (B) to gauge the effectiveness of the metric that is being measured.
This form of testing allows a website to split its traffic between the two versions and monitor the visitor’s actions to see which avenue yields the highest conversion rates. It also gives valuable insight into specific user’s behavior and how it affects their actions.
For example, new visitors to a website might respond better to content that doesn’t appeal to repeat customers. In this way, the website owner is gaining valuable feedback without bothering the consumer with specific questions and the necessity of addressing those responses.
By Category
In order to increase conversion rates and gain more leads, elements of a website that can be examined for possible changes include:
- Heading sizes, colors and wording
- Placement of images, their different types and sizes
- Content wording, placement, material and tone
- Call to action buttons (buy now, sign-up, subscribe) can be placed in different locations, have alternate wording and colors
- Social badge linkage, placement and size
- Logos and catchphrases
- Trade associations and trust seals, VeriSign and Better Business Bureau certification are good examples
Keep in mind that A/B testing doesn’t need to end when desired results are achieved. If the model A is showing the best conversion rates, the B form can be continuously altered to see if even better outcomes can be obtained.
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By Measuring Results
Choose a software tool or consult with a professional testing service that specializes in CRO evaluations to effectively measure your results. Google offers analytical tools that can assist with managing website traffic.
It is important to know that a high volume of website traffic doesn’t necessarily mean that enough data will be available for accurate results. The important metric to be evaluated is how the number of conversions differ between A and B.
Testing a company’s optimal web performance when it comes to converting leads into sales is vital to the ecommerce community, especially for the B2B marketer. Protecting a website’s online reputation, branding and measuring success rates can all be achieved through the use of CRO technology.
