Things to know about Conversion Research.

Hello there, so in today’s article I am going to talk about conversion research. Have a good read!

For any organization with a growth strategy whether it is a start-up, medium or large-scale business, conversion research is necessary in order to get sustainable results over time. It may not be so easy but once it is done properly, the results could provide valuable insights that will help the organization rather than having a personal bias that could prove costly if its not correct. Anytime an optimization project starts, it starts with conversion research because that’s where the problem diagnosis is done and we can figure out where money is leaking from. But for new businesses or start-ups that do not have customers to survey or data to wok with, what they need to start with is customer development. Figure out which is the best product to build and who the customers are so you know who to sell to. Once that is figured out, the conversion research becomes valuable.

The ResearchXL Model.

The researchXL model is a conversion research model recommended by CXL Institute, it is a tried and true model which has helped thousands of optimizers grow their business. It consists of a six step framework which teaches how to use Heuristic analysis to assess user experience, digital analysis to identify problem areas, Technical analysis to identify functional problems and qualitative research to draw insights.

Step 1 is Heuristic Analysis. Heuristic analysis helps to understand user experience on a website and there are four features to consider which are: Clarity, Friction, Anxiety and Distraction.

Step 2 is Technical Analysis. Technical analysis helps to identify functional problems with the website and make sure everything is running smoothly on the technical end.

Step 3 is Digital Analytics. Digital analytics involves the use of digital analytics tools to identify areas on a website that is losing money. Measurements can also be set which will instruct which areas should be optimized.

Step 4 is Qualitative Research. Qualitative research helps to personally understand users and pinpoint areas of friction to work on.

Step 5 is Users testing. User testing helps to understand user’s reactions to new features and how they interact with a website.

Step 6 is Mouse Tracking Analysis. Mouse tracking analysis provides insights to viewing and processing patterns of users.

When measuring the effectiveness of a testing program, these three key metrics will be most revealing and insightful:

        i.           Testing velocity

      ii.           Percentage of tests that provide a win.

    iii.           Impact per successful experiment.

What does conversion research consist of?

Conversion research consists of three parts; Experience based assessment, Qualitative research and Quantitative research.

Experience based assessment consists of:

Site Walkthroughs. This involves cross-browser and cross-device compatibility with a website. Some might consider it a technical area but as long as it affects conversions, it is also an optimization concern because technical issues and poor user experience will kill conversions on a website. Major questions to address in site walkthroughs are:

·        Does the site work with every major browser?

·        Does the site work with every device?

·        What is the user experience like with every device?

If all these three questions can be addressed correctly, then conversions will be easier on your website.

Heuristic Analysis. As earlier said, heuristic analysis helps to understand user experience. Heuristic analysis is an expert-based analysis that uses experience-based techniques for problem solving and discovery. Its results are not guaranteed to be optimal. It is one of the first things to do because what you discover in heuristic analysis will help you determine if you need to collect more data on some things.

Some biases to be aware of:

• Bias blind spot – the tendency to see oneself as less biased than other people, or to be able to identify more cognitive biases in others than in oneself.
•  Confirmation bias is a tendency of people to favor information that confirms their beliefs.

In heuristic analysis, there are no single best practices but there are however some already established frameworks that you can use as a starting point for refining your own process.

Some of them are:

• The Seven levels of conversion by Web Arts.
• Invesp Conversion Framework.
• Lift Framework developed by WiderFunnel

At CXL Institute, conversionXL is the framework used for heuristic analysis and the steps involved in conversionXL are:

• Assess each page for clarity – is it perfectly clear and understandable what’s being offered and how it works? This is not just about the value proposition – it applies to all pages (pricing, featured, product pages etc).
• Understand context and evaluate page relevancy for visitors: does web page relate to what the visitor thought they were going to see? Do pre-click and post-click messages and visuals align?
• Assess incentives to take action: Is it clear what people are getting for their money? Is there some sort of believable urgency? What kind of motivators are used? Is there enough product information? Is the sales copy persuasive?
• Evaluate all the sources of friction on the key pages. This includes difficult and long processes, insufficient information, poor readability and UX, bad error validation, fears about privacy & security, any uncertainties and doubts, unanswered questions.
• Pay attention to distracting elements on every high priority pages. Are there any blinking banners or automatic sliders stealing attention? Too much information unrelated to the main call to action? Any elements that are not directly contributing to visitors taking desired action?
•  Understand buying phases and see if visitors are rushed into too big of a commitment too soon. Are there paths in place for visitors in different stages (research, evaluation etc)?

Usability Analysis. Usability is all about making a website easy to use and understand. If a website is difficult to use and understand, it will lead to poor conversions. Usability is not the same as user testing.

Jakob Nielsen, a usability guru defines usability by 5 quality components:

Learnability: How easy is it for users to accomplish basic tasks the first time they encounter the design?

Efficiency: Once users have learned the design, how quickly can they perform tasks?

Memorability: When users return to the design after a period of not using it, how easily can they reestablish proficiency?

Errors: How many errors do users make, how severe are these errors, and how easily can they recover from the errors?

Satisfaction: How pleasant is it to use the design?

Qualitative research consists of:

• Online surveys with recent customers
• On-site polls
• Phone interviews
• Live chat transcripts
• Customer support insight
• User testing

Quantitative research consists of:

• Web analytics analysis (e.g. Google Analytics and other quantified data tools like Adobe Analytics, KISSMetrics, MixPanel, Heap Analytics)
• Mouse tracking analysis.

That’s it for this article, I will be posting more articles in the following weeks with more knowledge and insight about Growth Marketing.

If you want to learn more in detail about growth marketing or any other marketing course, feel free to visit CXL Institute website. They have a wide range of marketing courses and top 1% professionals in different fields of marketing that impact first class knowledge. You can also apply for their mini-degree scholarship programs just like i did.

Catch you later!