CRO is very popular now, and for a good reason! CRO is the foremost approach to growing sales in a heuristic and genuinely optimal way. It all starts with researching and understanding the current state of the stores’ conversions. In this article, we’ll explore all aspects of conducting proper conversion rate research, including establishing accurate objectives, using digital analytics, and analyzing data.
The Goal of Conducting Conversion Research.
Conversion research in eCommerce has dual objectives: to comprehend the nature of the business and the state of the website and to understand the target audience. By acquiring a comprehensive and data-driven understanding of the business, website, and audience, valuable and actionable insights into user behaviour can be derived. This, in turn, leads to the development of a detailed guide for identifying and prioritizing problematic areas and suggestions for A/B testing. The process begins with data collection and the implementation of relevant tools. Once the necessary data is gathered, it is thoroughly analyzed with a particular focus on:
Functionality - testing the website's functionality in relation to established business goals.
Usability - determining if the website is user-friendly and optimized for the target audience from the user experience perspective.
Information architecture - identifying the best wayfinding and navigation and testing the website's organization of hierarchy and labelling to support usability.
Design - exploring if the website adheres to modern design principles and best practices for the target audience's behaviour.
The deliverables of Conversion Research are:
Presentation of the results (pdf document).
A list of prioritized enhancements and actionable steps to improve the website's user experience
A thorough issues log based on data sources for each section (google analytics, heatmaps, users testing etc.)
Once the research is completed, we can begin a process of ongoing conversion optimization by applying the research findings to specific improvements on the website. This testing and implementation process will be discussed in more detail following the research, as the main focus of the current research is identifying areas that need improvement in terms of improving conversions and usability of the website.
Contents of Conversion Research for an eCommerce website:
The objectives of this analysis are:
To determine if the website is compatible with the majorly used browsers
To evaluate the website's performance across different devices
To assess the variation in user experience across different devices
When reviewing a website, we will:
Assess the comprehensibility of each page, such as product pages, pricing, and featured pages, and ensure that they are easily understandable in terms of the products or services being offered and their functionality. This includes not only the value proposition but all website pages.
Understand the context to assess the relevancy of each page to the visitors. This includes determining if the webpage aligns with the visitor's expectations and if the pre- and post-click messages and visuals are consistent.
Assess the prompts for taking action by analyzing if it is clear what the customer is getting for their money. Check if any credible calls-to-action or urgency are created, identify the motivators used, evaluate if there is enough product information and if the sales copy is convincing.
Evaluate all sources of friction on fundamental screens, including complex and lengthy procedures, inadequate information, poor usability and readability, error validation, concerns regarding privacy and security, ambiguity and doubts, and unresolved queries.
Carefully examine any distracting elements on all high-priority screens. Are there any flashing banners or automatic sliders that divert attention? Is there an excessive amount of information that is irrelevant to the primary call to action? Are there any elements that do not directly contribute to the desired action of the visitor?
Determine the buying phases and check if visitors are being pushed into making too big of a commitment too early. Are there specific pathways for visitors at different phases (such as research and evaluation)?
We document all observations and areas of concern during the website walkthroughs and heuristic analysis. We then use Google Analytics and other data sources to validate or refute these findings. We conduct further data collection if there needs to be more data to prove or disprove a hypothesis.
In the Digital Analytics analysis & evaluation, the following will be conducted:
Examination of user Funnels to pinpoint key drop-off points, including analysis of shopping behaviour, checkout behaviour, and goal funnel analysis
Analysis of website goal flows using various user and behaviour segments
Identification of key audience characteristics, such as location, visitor type, and demographics
High-traffic pages and low-performance analysis
Analysis of landing pages
Examination of website search functionality & usage of search terms.
Evaluation of website traffic channels and sources, including analyzing conversion rates, landing pages, revenues, and detailed analysis of paid search sources
Creation and assessment of advanced user segments.
Notice: Before conducting any comprehensive digital analytics data analysis, it is essential to ensure that all necessary measurements (such as goals, funnels, and event tracking) and that the data in the property is accurate. The account should also have proper configurations and setup. Having complete and genuine data is significant for any data analysis and conversion research. If technical adjustments are required, we will provide clear tasks to the development team to configure the necessary tools. It is important to note that this research does not include technical setup.
For assessing actual user experience & behaviour, our analysis will encompass:
Recordings of Individual User Sessions.
Evaluate user experience and behaviour by observing user interaction with the website and pages (such as how users fill in forms, navigate pages, and search for specific pages/actions). This provides insights into the user experience on the website. In analyzing user recordings, we segment user data (by browser, visitor type, behaviour, and errors) and use insights from Digital Analytics analysis to investigate potential user experience issues. The user screen recording analysis aims to identify areas where users face challenges or problems navigating toward a conversion goal (such as a purchase) and to understand usage patterns. We concentrate on problematic pages (high traffic, low performance) and the interaction with the website's Cart and Checkout process. Session replays are particularly useful in observing how users fill out forms and interact with checkout fields.
Click Heatmaps
Analyze user click distribution on the website to understand where users click the most important buttons (such as the call to action buttons) on different pages, determine if users click on elements that are not buttons, and comprehend user behaviour and elements that attract attention on screens. Evaluate potential improvements to call-to-actions.
Segmented User Flow Analysis
Analyze specific segments of user screen recordings to define user experience problems along the conversion path, identify issues with drop-off pages and potential improvements, and examine user behaviour while filling out forms.
In the last stage of conducting Conversion Research for an eCommerce website, we synthesize the research insights and create:
Executive summary of research findings and the overall website condition
Key customer and website insights
A prioritized list of eCommerce conversion issues and drawbacks based on data analysis
A detailed guide outlining the step-by-step process for optimizing website conversion rates, including prioritized solutions for identified problems and suggestions for A/B testings.
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