101 techniques to increase the CRO conversion

101 techniques to increase the CRO conversion

1. Avoid time division tests, also known as “before and after tests.” They do not work, we mention them in our list to advise you on how bad they are, keep in mind that your orders are not constant in time and it depend on many factors. The time division tests are not conclusive at all.
2. Test A/B: many times, a simple A/B test is all you need. It is easy to do and today there are many softwares that allow you to do it.
3. Multivariate test: what multivariate software should I use? The following platforms are very popular among our customers: Visual Website Optimizer, Optimizely, Adobe Test & Target, Sitespect and Google Analytics Content Experiments (free).

Here we have other tools and techniques you will need to do a good job to optimize the conversion rate.

4. Eyetracking: this tool shows you what elements visitors to your website are watching. Also in what elements they do not click as they do not see them. Most eyetracking is performed using specific hardware that is usually expensive and offer a limited number of suppliers.
5. “Eyetracking for the poor”: After five seconds in each usability test, ask to assessed what they have seen so far. Usually, it’s easy for you to tell them.
6. Clickmapping: a clickmap is an image of an annotated page with information on where the visitors clicked. Here are several options: Crazy Egg, ClickTale and Hotjar.
7. Customer surveys: your customers know why they bought. And why they almost did not do it. Ask them about this. Many survey services are available. SurveyMonkey is very popular.
8. Stop having discussions with your work colleagues about who likes what. When doubt arises, TEST! Your mantra from now on should be “Without data you are just another person with an opinion”.
9. Learn your other new mantra. When your colleagues are opposed to changes you are making, remind them that it is just an exploratory experiment to learn what is happening, not a long-term decision. Let this become your mantra: “It’s just an experiment, it’s just an experiment.”
10. Visualize your business as an experiment in constant change. By continually performing tests, you will learn which factors increase your earnings and what don’t.
11. Copy what works for others (within limits). In particular, copy the companies that seem to be tracking and testing.
12. Copy the techniques that marketing specialists, who have been testing for decades, have developed; that is, copy the advertisers of traditional channels. The Internet may be new, but your visitors may not. For approximately 100 years, advertisers have been performing A/B tests to find out what works.
13. Google AdWords: AdWords is valuable as a source of targeted traffic, but it can also be used to run A/B tests by creating two identical ads with different destination URLs.
14. Live chat: few tools tells you something about your “non-customers”, that is, the visitors who came to your site but then quit for whatever reason. You rarely receive comments from these people. It is unlikely that they will call you, but maybe you can persuade them to use live chat.
15. Web analysis: at the most basic level, the “Behavior” function tells you where visitors click on your site, where they do not click and where they are when they leave your site. Web analysts insist that a good reading of the traffic routes your website receives will detect the points of improvement to be able to modify them and thus create value for the company.
16. Usability test: you can carry out this test to practically anyone. The results that emerge from these tests are gold mines, literally. If we could have only one test tool, it would be the usability test. Web analytics tell you what visitors do, but usability tests tell you why. No other tool offers so much evidence about the behavior of visitors on your website.
17. References to acquaintances: allows clients to send a personalized note to their friends and acquaintances. You will have access to these notes and they are a gold mine of information about why a particular client ends up becoming. In addition, you can see the exact words that customers use to sell your product to their friends. It’s like having a team of free copywriters!
18. Make bets with your colleagues about which page will win in the test. You will be surprised at how often you are wrong.
19. Make sure you have excellent professionals to improve the conversion. This is the most important job in your company. You have three options:
    1. Develop the project internally with your best staff.
    2. Hire experts and do it internally.
    3. Outsource the project to an expert who has a great interest in making it a great success.

20. Become the best seller of your company. Your website is your digital seller. You have the advantage of being able to sell to thousands of customers at the same time. However, only direct contact with potential buyers will teach you the reactions of prospects to certain types of arguments and approaches. It is, by far, the fastest and most effective way to discover what attracts your prospects and what does not. The words on your website must have been tested on real people. No amount of test will give you this direct view of your potential market. Then, you have to choose: either become the best seller in your company, or look for the best seller and listen to how that person sells the product.
    Do not perform tests on small changes. Perform test on big changes. This has two advantages:
    1. You will get the results faster
    2. You are more likely to get improvements.
21. Test changes in two steps:
    1. During the usability test you will identify elements that are an impediment for the user, modify them in the first place, because it is the easiest way to make quick improvements.
    2. Then, make a test on new ideas that could make your business grow significantly.
22. Test what your usability analysts told you to change. It is extremely important that you perform usability tests.
23. Do not worry if your conversion rate is temporarily reduced. If a test is a failure, they will have poor results for a day. If a test is a success, you will have a successful life.
24. Do not finish the test too soon! Make sure you have enough data! Some marketing specialists say you should leave the tests active for two weeks. Keep in mind that for tests that use multivariate test software, you must use the statistical significance calculator incorporated in the software.
25. The best place to start is to identify the weak points in your conversion funnel. Draw a brief description of your conversion funnel, from advertising to the closing of the sale. This will include the following::
    1. Your advertising
    2. Your sales force
    3. Your home page
    4. Your product pages
    5. Your payment pages
    6. Your “Order confirmation” page
    7. Your call center staff
    8. How the package is sent

Understand your message before starting

27. ¿What is the positioning of your company? In other words, what makes you different or better than all your competitors? O What is your value proposition? Have you ever done a test on your positioning against possible alternatives? Make a short list of alternatives to perform a test and let visitors decide which is the best convert.
28. Classify the five main points you want to communicate to your visitors. You want to make sure that regardless of what your visitors see on your website they are left with these five main elements.
29. Consider all the different types of visitors that might visit your site and then try to write for all of them. Define what is called as a descriptive of your target, the figure of “buyer person”. Some advices:
    1. You can choose to use real people, for example, a client you know well and who is the prototype of one of your targets.
    2. You can also choose to create fictitious characters that incorporate the characteristics of a certain segment of visitors
30. For each page, make sure you know what the “intentions of the visitors” are. For example, some visitors may be looking to make a purchase, some may seek customer support and others may be looking to be part of your team. Instead of guessing your intentions, you can take a survey to find out their real intentions. 4Q is an easy tool to implement to begin with.
31. Make a test on all the elements of your website! In truth, everything can be improved until proven otherwise!
32. Identify your star products and then place them in a privileged location on the page. We refer to the upper half of the page (that is, at the top of the page so that users do not have to scroll down), preferably on the left side.
33. The headlines are extremely important. If your visitors do not like the headline, they will not read anymore. A simple but effective approach is to express your main message in a headline that
    1. It is written in terms of benefit to the customer, not in terms of product characteristics.
    2. It suggests that the client will get the results easily.
    3. It is credible (that is, it contains some kind of test).
    4. It is specific

34. Try high and low prices, because customers do not always look for the lowest prices. High prices can be reassuring and report more benefits than low prices.
35. Try the odd prices. We refer to prices that end with a seven or a nine. Items with these prices tend to sell better than those with prices that end in zero. This phenomenon has proven to be valid repeatedly.
36. What you say is more important than how you say it. You will get more significant improvements by changing the central message of your title.
37. If you do not know how to describe the characteristics of your product in terms of benefits, do this exercise: imagine that customers look at the title and ask: “Why should I worry about this?” You are likely to answer this question describing a benefit.
38. Do you find it difficult to get a good headline? Adapt to the headlines of publications like those in our blog. An example headline “Seven truths about XXX that you do not know”. Replace “XXX” with the name of your product and you will have a compelling headline.
39. Visitors will see the slogan below your logo almost as much as the title itself. Therefore, make sure that it clearly expresses a different positioning; that is, it must describe what it does and how it fits into the market..
40. Try different offers, like
    1. One month free trial.
    2. Buy one and get one free. 2 x 1
    3. Payment deferred in installments
    4. Shorter stays
    5. Buy now, pay later
    6. Automatic renewal

In general, do what you can to put your product in the client’s hands.

41. Divide your product or service into a standard version (for potential customers that are price sensitive) and a premium version (for those that are not). This also has the psychological advantage of turning the decision of the potential client into a decision of choice or not instead of a yes/no decision.
42. Many of the visitors that leave without converting leave the site because you do not offer the product or service they are looking for. The answer is often to start selling what customers are looking for.
43. Try different bonuses that customers get if they place an order. These include free reports, gifts and accessories.
44. Includes a product or service guarantee. Start with the most aggressive guarantee. For example, if you are not satisfied, we will refund your money.
45. Includes opinions from satisfied customers. In general, a video with the opinion is better than an opinion with an image, which is better than an opinion with just a name, which is better than an anonymous opinion.
46. Includes references in the media. If you do not currently have any, try to give the media free material in exchange for the comment.
47. Develop a systematic way to collect customer opinions. Train your sales staff to solicit opinions as long as they receive a compliment. Send an email to your customers asking for their opinion.
48. Perform a test on different calls to action. The “call to action” is what you want customers to do. The typical call to action is “Place order”. Test direct calls to action, such as “Buy now and get a 10% discount,” as well as hints, such as “More information.”
49. Try to make the call-to-action button pleasant and visible. Large, brightly colored buttons often convert better; They seem to attract the reader’s attention.
50. Try different reasons why visitors should act promptly (for example, “The offer ends on Wednesday” or “Only 42 tickets remain”). Keep in mind that we are not suggesting that you lie to your visitors: your conversion rate depends to a large extent on credibility and trust. However, if you look at your own business, you will probably find that you already have real reasons why potential customers should respond promptly.
51. Highlight the right things. You can do it in several ways, like
    1. Use bold
    2. Use cursive
    3. Highlights important words.

The images that capture the attention are great, but only if they help to communicate your message (what they rarely do).

52. Give the option to your visitors to zoom to see a larger image of the product.
53. Put legends under your images and do a test on them. For some strange reason, people almost always read the subtitles below the images.
54. Calls (that is, text that points to particular parts of the image) can communicate a lot of information in a small space, and visitors tend to read them.
55. If your page is long and requires scrolling, consider repeating your call-to-action button several times on the page.
56. If your page requires scrolling or scrolling, it eliminates the “false funds”, that is, the design elements that imply that the clients have reached the end of the page when they have not done so.
57. Many websites get higher conversion rates if your page is set up in the form of a letter with a single column with a personal and individual writing style. Regardless of your personal feelings about such websites, in some markets they work.
    

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    Work on Design

58. Make sure that the things your visitors see first are the things they want to see. A single-column design allows you to control the order in which visitors view your site.
59. Make sure your most valuable content is located where visitors actually look, what you can determine using eyetracking.
60. Eliminate clutter If you can get rid of the elements of your page that do not work, create more space for those that do work.
61. Make sure the design reflects the architecture of your information. Constantly search for ways to sort your information into ordered sections. Then, make sure that each section uses the principle of progressive disclosure, so that users see only the information they need at a certain point.
62. Decide what to highlight on your home page. Write a list of the products or services that your visitors are looking for. Most likely you can divide your intentions into categories and subcategories. Assigns space on the web page according to the popularity (and value) of these categories.
63. Along the same lines, consider creating a list of your best-selling items. These lists are popular, because visitors find it reassuring to buy products that others bought.

64. Take a test on different navigation structures. For example, rewrite the headings in your navigation bar so that visitors can understand them. Or rearrange the navigation completely so that sections are organized more intuitively for users.
65. If you are sure that your visitors are on the most relevant page, consider removing the navigation bar (or at least moving it to a less prominent place). The reason is that the navigation bars can be a distraction.
66. If your website has an unconventional design, try a conventional design. Conventional designs are conventional for a reason: they make it easier for visitors to find what they are looking for.
67. Does your website contain free links that you never thought your visitors could really click on? Remove any links that distract you and take you to places you do not want them to go
68. Use a nice big font for your title.
69. Take a test on different images. The following types of images tend to increase sales:
    1. Iproduct images
    2. Images of product used, perhaps by someone that visitors perceive as a role model.
    3. Images of the successful result of the product.
    4. Images of satisfied customers who have the product (that is, a testimony and a photo of the product, all in one)..

Write the text

70. Marketers have been debating for a long time about the amount of text they should include. In general, write everything you need to communicate your complete sales message and overcome all likely objections. Your goal is to condense as many persuasive arguments and as much relevant information in the shortest possible text. Transmitting all this information will generally require more words than most websites currently use.
71. Use simple language No reader is too sophisticated for short and simple sentences.
72. Fill the text with the benefits, not only with the characteristics of the product.
73. It includes all the information that customers may need to make a purchase. (Note that it is not necessary that everything be on the main page of the product).
74. Be sure to address all the common objections raised by your clients. Compile a table of objections and counter-objections, and then classify them in order of importance.
75. Do a test on different font sizes to make your text more readable.
76. Do you have a field to enter a promotional code? Test if this creates frustration for customers. Buyers are often annoyed to process orders when they see that others are getting a better deal.
77. Try to include confirmation logos such as those of the credit cards you accept, your payment provider, the commercial organizations of which you are a member or your SSL certificate provider.
78. Try a different version of their “About us” page. Show your team as real and nice individuals, not just as members of a cold, faceless corporation.
79. Make your message consistent. Do what you can to ensure that your sales message remains the same from the ads to the placement of orders.
80. Immediately after customers have processed an order or accepted something, they are in a particularly pleasant mood. Take advantage of the positive mood of your customers by offering additional products or services.
81. A good recommendation program on the “Order Confirmation” page can be very effective in generating new and valuable customers. (Speaking of friends, would any of your friends benefit from reading this article? Send them a link – they’ll love you for it!)
82. The “Order Confirmation” page is an excellent place to sell other products (this is known as “cross-selling”).
83. Be careful with the input pop-ups and output pop-ups. Sometimes they work well; Sometimes, however, they irritate users.
84. Try different font shades. Black on white is usually a safe bet.
85. Near the end of the text, consider having a series of points that summarize the main benefits of your product or service.
86. Consider putting the start of your order processing form on the same page of the product.
87. Adding audio can be a very effective method to sell your products and services. Xiosoft Audio is an easy way to put audio on your website.
88. The video can also be effective. Perhaps the easiest approach is to incorporate YouTube videos.
89. Repeat your offer and main benefits on the first page of your shopping cart or on the order processing form. Some customers click on the “Buy Now” button just to see what the price and shipping cost will be, so you do not want to miss the opportunity to persuade them.
90. Do not request too much information, each additional field is another opportunity for users to abandon the purchase process. Do you really need your ID number before placing an order?
91. At the moment you request information, it is the right time to show the client peace of mind and explain why you need that information. For example, under the “Place order” button, remind customers of your guarantee and return policy.
92. Having thumbnails of the products in your cart can increase the likelihood that customers will complete their orders.
93. Use Ajax or DHTML to hide the parts of forms that are not necessary. Both technologies allow visitors to open sections of the page without having to reload the entire page.
94. Give the possibility to customers to process orders for example by telephone. he presence of the telephone number can increase the tranquility of the clients even if the clients do not call it..

Usability

95. Analyze your website using different browsers and screen resolutions to see how your customers see it. Practical tools to do it are CrossBrowserTesting, Browsercam and Browsershots.
96. Minimize the loading times of your website. Octagate is a very good tool to do it.
97. Enable a search bar on your website. Google Mini and Google Free Web Search allow your visitors to search your site using Google. Then he uses his analysis package to discover what his visitors were looking for. Then, consider adding this content to your web page or making it more prominent.
98. Consider making everything clickable. Visitors click on everything, particular images. And if they are clicking on something, it’s because they expect something to happen.
99. If you have advertising on your site do a test with different variations. With so many advertising programs (such as Google AdSense and Chitika), you can divide advertising into channels. Then you can try the following and measure what variations generate more revenue:
    1. Different add sizes
       Different advertisement forms
       Different ad positions

100. Another way to increase revenue per visitor is to increase the average life value of the customer, which is called Life Time Value (LTV) either by increasing the average cart or increasing the recurrence.
101. Sign up to receive our newsletter about the latest news about the optimization of the CRO conversion rate. It’s free, and it will change your life for the better.

¿What should I do now?

1. If you have more questions and want to know how we work and the possibilities of improvement of CRO that your website has, request a first FREE analysis and one of our consultants will contact you shortly to advise you.
2. If you want to continue reporting on this topic and many more you can download our ebook on the basic fundamentals of CRO to start optimizing the conversion rate in your digital business. You also have many other articles in our current blog where you will find references on this topic and many more.
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