Each month, we publish a high-level overview of the success achieved and the learnings garnered from our client experimentation programs. Insights from across dozens of programs and myriad industries fuel our efforts to design better, more strategic tests that drive positive business impact. Reach out with any questions or comments!
July 2019
Whether your patriotism is at its peak (looking at you, Argentina, Canada, France, USA, among others), you’re an Amelia Earhardt aficionado, or you’re planning a pilgrimage to Area 51, July is a time to soar higher and fly further. At Cro Metrics, July produced some of our best test results of the year! Here’s what we learned.
- Requesting user information performs best when it’s situated in a prime spot on the site. One of our nonprofit clients saw a 584% jump in referral email captures after moving the ask to the top navigation across the entire site.
- CTAs situated below the jump on mobile devices cause unnecessary friction. One of our healthcare clients saw a 44% lift in clicks on its ‘Get Started’ CTA after moving it above the mobile fold.
- Conversion sections of your website need to be redesigned purposefully. One of our peer-to-peer services clients saw a 22% lift in conversions after restructuring a key page, adding social proof, and elevating the primary CTA.
- Video isn’t always a remedy for low engagement and conversions. One of our software clients saw a 21% increase in high-value form submissions after swapping video for a still image on its homepage hero.
- Sticky footers can be very effective in dictating user behavior. One of our e-commerce clients saw a 20% increase in app installs, in a single day, after using a sticky footer to highlight the preferred location.
June 2019
If the kids are out of school, Wimbledon is on the telly, and the longest day of the month boasts more than 14 hours of sunlight, it must be June. Whether you’re a father, a flag, or a forehand, June is a time for celebration and relaxation. At Cro Metrics, the longer days, family times, and summer climes of June inspire us to do some of our best work. Here’s a small sample of what we learned this month.
- Reducing the number of fields in forms improves the likelihood customers will complete them. One of our medical supply clients saw a 10% lift in checkouts after making its form easier to view and adding a guest checkout option.
- People don’t like feeling pigeonholed into donations. One of our non-profit clients saw a 23% jump in one-time gifts after removing all pre-filled donation amounts and allowing the user to fill in an amount.
- Too many pricing options can cause would-be buyers to second-guess their purchase decisions. One of our e-commerce clients saw a 32% spike in completed orders after removing an “elite” option of its product that cost more and required a more complex installation.
- Don’t make potential purchasers dig for product information. One of our other e-commerce clients saw a 17% lift in engagement with its products after using thumbnail images instead of a confusing “[…]” symbol to denote additional information.
May 2019
We often get questions about the types of testing other clients are doing and how their experimentation programs help them meet their business objectives. Here are six of the best test results and most poignant learnings from May 2019.
- A B2B software and compliance management company saw a 31% lift in high-value form submissions after replacing bland and confusing copy with clear, direct messaging and enlarging the size of the copy.
- An e-commerce client saw a 9% lift in overall revenue after disabling sections of the site that were heavily animated. It’s users preferred static assets that didn’t detract from page performance.
- A SaaS client experienced a remarkable increase in conversions after adjusting the copy on its blog CTA. Changing “Subscribe” to “Free Trial” drove a 68% lift in CTA clicks, while switching from “Subscribe” to “View demo” drove a 249% increase in the same metric.
- A nonprofit organization saw a 15% lift in average donation value by clearly explaining to customers what their donation would buy. The change turned a simple transaction into a humanizing user experience.
- An e-commerce client saw a 7% lift in average order value and a 3% lift in revenue after adding a “Free Shipping” butter bar on its mobile site. Users added more products to their carts to take advantage of the free shipping offer.
- A nonprofit organization saw a 19% increase in survey completions after shortening the survey and refreshing its look and feel. After the change, users were more likely to complete the survey and move on to the donation page.
April 2019
The emergence of spring inspired creativity and bolstered productivity across our experimentation programs, as we recorded 39 overall tests wins in the month of April. Below is a sample of some of the most compelling wins we saw across a multitude of industries.
- An environmental nonprofit organization saw a 40% jump in monthly donations by adding a CTA that allowed site visitors to donate directly from its ‘About Us’ page. The new CTA provided a clear next step for users hoping to contribute after learning about the organization.
- A software and compliance management company saw a 31% increase in submissions of high-value forms by reducing the number of fields from six to two. The original forms were cumbersome and time-consuming to complete.
- An executive knowledge-sharing platform saw an 18% lift in conversions and a 10% lift in leads generated by simply switching the hero image on a key landing page to a more compelling visual. The new image provided the missing context and relevance to prospective customers.
- A beverage company saw a 17% increase in products added to carts by moving the primary CTA to the top third of the page. The original CTA was positioned too far down the page to be effective, causing users to click away before engaging.
- A customer experience software platform saw a 14% lift in free trials after removing the single sign-on (SSO) option from its registration form. The SSO was causing friction and confusion among potential customers and removing it simplified the conversion process.
March 2019
Whether you’re mad about hoops, excited about the equinox or, go gaga for green beer and leprechauns, March can be an exciting month. At Cro Metrics, we spent the month launching some exciting new experiments and racking up some compelling test results.
- A software and compliance management company saw a 44% jump in conversions after moving three key CTAs out of the mobile hamburger menu and into a sticky footer. What we learned: Removing friction for visitors improved their journey and increased high-value conversions.
- An environmental nonprofit organization saw a 46% lift in CTA clicks and an 11% lift in conversions after adding a sticky CTA to its primary checkout page. What we learned: Visitors wanted a quick and easy way to checkout from anywhere on the site.
- An online marketplace saw a 34% jump in conversions and a 5% lift in revenue after adding “secure checkout” and “instant download” to its mobile cart page. What we learned: Adding security and trust signals reassured visitors and fueled an increase in purchases.
February 2019
We get a lot of questions about the types of testing our other clients are doing and how their experimentation program is helping them meet their business goals. Here are some of the most poignant learnings from February 2019.
- An environmental nonprofit organization saw a 55% lift in donations after adding a “Donate Now” CTA to the hero image on its homepage. What we learned: Its high-value visitors need a clear and simple way to donate quickly.
- A for-profit education organization saw a 15% lift in high-value leads after cross-promoting courses on high-traffic pages on the site. What we learned: Leveraging an already engaged audience drives higher conversion rates.
- A transportation company saw a 15% lift in clicks to its primary CTA after removing a secondary CTA that was distracting. What we learned: Its customers prioritize browsing products over downloading an app, especially early in the buyer journey.
- A cruise line saw an 8% lift in visits to its dates & pricing pages after adding a CTA to all of its cruise itineraries. What we learned: The CTA removed friction and allowed customers to view upcoming sailings without navigating away from the page.
- A global nonprofit organization saw an 8% lift in conversions after testing into the correct order and amount for its donation options. What we learned: Its customers are happy to donate when they’re comfortable with the process and amount.
January 2019
The holiday season has come to a close, the New Year’s noisemakers have all been nestled away, and it’s time to get back to work. A new year means new ideas, initiatives, and inertia so now’s not the time to get complacent about your testing program. We began 2019 with a bang, recording a bevy of testing wins across a variety of businesses.
- One of our global nonprofit partners saw a 35% increase in conversion rate and a 13% lift in revenue after increasing the size of its donation buttons
- An online hospitality service saw a 22% increase in form submissions on its homepage by relocating its social proof points above the fold
- By redesigning product pages to showcase its unique value proposition, one of our app-based auto retailers saw a 17% increase in clicks on its primary CTA.
- One of our consumer finance partners saw a 9% uptick in submitted applications on mobile (and a 5% increase on desktop!) after removing a particularly distracting step in its application process.
- One of our kitchenware retailers saw a 5% lift in applications after making pay rate information more prominent
December 2018
The holiday season is often a time when business grinds to a halt. The fun, festivities, and free time are great for team morale but can take a toll on productivity. At Cro Metrics, we never stop seeking valuable insights and December was an especially productive month. We produced some incredible wins for our partners and added several new strategies to our internal playbook. Here are some highlights:
- After improving the wording and functionality of CTAs on product pages, one of our fashion retailers saw a 51% increase in items added to carts; a 3% lift in sitewide conversions; and a 2% lift in overall revenue
- One of our compliance management clients saw a 31% lift in submissions after reducing the size and number of fields required in its online form
- An environmental organization saw a 29% increase in donations and a 36% lift in clicks to its ‘recent news’ section after repositioning content on its homepage
- A self-publishing platform saw a 25% lift in registrations after making its primary CTA more prominent on mobile devices
- An online learning platform saw a 10% increase in paid memberships after making its CTAs more actionable and consistent across the site
November 2018
We’re often asked about the kinds of experiments our clients are learning from. In this email, we’d like to share some of these insights with you. We launched over 100 experiments across 60 clients last month and, in the process, uncovered invaluable insights that will bolster our testing efforts moving forward. Here are some highlights:
- One of our data security clients saw a 95% increase in demo/contact submissions after redesigning a crucial customer-facing section of its site.
- A pet insurer saw a 100% lift in prospective customers providing email addresses after adding an option to save their quote before exiting the site.
- An online payment platform saw a 39% increase in ‘Contact Sales’ form submissions after moving its primary CTA above the fold.
- A car shopping app saw a 23% increase in the number of applications submitted after providing prospective customers an easy way to return to their incomplete applications.
October 2018
We’re excited about our end-of-year goal of helping our clients better create and advocate a Culture of Experimentation in 2019! When experimentation is woven into an organization’s DNA, people feel empowered to share and collaborate on ideas, test them out and collectively benefit from the knowledge gained. To help you achieve this, we’ve taken on initiatives like creating data-rich Experimentation Dashboards allowing for easy sharing of test details, an improved quarterly program review format to help better demonstrate the value of the program with laser focus on your goals and recommendations help achieve them, along with other communication vehicles we’ll be improving and announcing soon. If you have input on how we can help you promote your program internally, please share!
September 2018
We launched nearly 200 tests across 50+ clients last month leading to invaluable cross-learning.
- Adding Unique Value Propositions (UVPs) to a benefits bar saw a 22% lift in orders completed for an online grocery delivery service.
- Simplifying a petition form for a non-profit from 2 steps to 1 along with moving the phone number realized a +10% improvement on signed petitions.
- For a retail client, we changed their mobile product grid from 1 to 2 columns and doubled the number of product detail pages viewed, yielding substantial upticks in all down funnel shopping metrics.
- Removing the ‘X’ from a modal form saw a +28% lift in Scheduled Calls, the primary metric of a professional services client.