StockX is one of the biggest names in luxury resale. Their product offerings include sneakers, apparel, electronics, trading cards, and other collectibles. Plus, every item sold goes through a complex verification process so shoppers know their products are authentic.
Even with StockX’s popularity in the market, stats have shown that most of the company’s traffic comes from organic search—not paid. Could this be because the display ads are failing to compel shoppers to click? We could test that.
The Opportunity: StockX’s Paid Ads Could Be Failing to Convert
StockX experiences a high degree of web traffic. Recent data shows that in December 2018, the company’s website reached 8 million visitors. Despite this high traffic number, one of StockX’s competitors has a lower bounce rate, longer average visit duration, and a higher rate of pages viewed per visit.
The majority of StockX’s growth over the years has come from organic search with almost none of it coming from paid. Is there a reason for that? Could the higher bounce rates, shorter average visit duration, and lower page views be due to not utilizing paid media to the fullest?
It’s quite possible.
Currently, StockX’s ads are simple in nature and don’t have a compelling call to action (CTA). This is something we think the company could fix quickly that may have a startling impact.
The Control
Our Hypothesis: Invoking a Sense of Urgency Will Boost Click-Through Rates
Why don’t internet users click display ads? According to Digiday, the leading reason is that users fear banner ads. Plus, many consumers feel they lack creativity and are intrusive. As a result, many of them are ignored.
The key is to meet user expectations and answer the question, “what’s in it for me” on their behalf. A great way to do this is by adding in a sense of urgency using a compelling call to action.
Users want to know exactly how they will benefit from an ad before clicking the CTA. So, CTAs must be straightforward and honest without the smoke and mirrors common in this industry.
The Potential Fix: Changing the CTA Copy on the Banner Ads
We would begin our test by switching the CTA copy on StockX’s ad from “Shop Now” to “Get Yours Today & Save.” This CTA is specific and illustrates how the user will benefit from clicking the ad. Plus, “today” inspires users to act now before the offer potentially goes away.
We hypothesize that this change would invoke a sense of urgency as well as increase traffic to the site, conversions, and average order value.
The Variation
What Can Cro Metrics Test for You?
Could a simple CTA update be standing between you and business growth? It’s possible. Only through testing can you truly find out. We can help! To learn more about our experimentation and optimization programs, subscribe to Cro Metrics.