CRO (Conversion Rate Optimisation) and Web Analytics

Conversion rate optimisation, or CRO, is simply optimising whatever action it is you want your website visitors to take. For instance, when a visitor to your site signs up to your email list through your offer of a free newsletter or ebook, that visitor is taking the action you want him or her to take – he or she is converting to a lead. While it may sound intimidating, it’s important to use web analytics so that you can analyse how well (or not so well) your offers are converting and thus optimise these areas when needed.

The purpose of any website is to increase leads, customers, and ultimately sales. While you can look at data all day long, you may still not be able to understand what your website is actually accomplishing in terms of conversions. The success of your site hinges on whether your offers convert well; in other words, the percentage of your visitors who take the action you want them to take. While Google Analytics can give you lots of insight on various aspects of how your website is performing, analysing conversion rates is a complex and time consuming process. Thankfully there are many companies out there today that can handle analysing conversion rates for you, so that you can determine whether further optimisation is necessary!

Here’s a quick overview on what conversion rate optimisation is, and is not:

It is . . .

• Taking existing traffic and making the most of it
• Informed by user feedback, analytics, and other insights
• An approach to improving your website’s performance that is structured and systematic
• Defined by your website’s unique needs and objectives

It is not . . .

• Focused on getting as much traffic as possible, regardless of quality or the user’s engagement
• Based on hunches or guesses – or what other marketers seem to be doing

What are the advantages of web analytics for conversion rate optimisation? Perhaps the biggest benefit of having a tool or service to perform analysis is that rather than being inundated with data to sort through, you can quickly know what changes need to be made to your site to increase conversions.

Other advantages include:

• Increased sales and conversions on your website
• Enhanced customer insights
• Greater number of satisfied customers
• Generate additional repeat business

Visitors to your website “convert” or take a very specific action when they make a purchase, download a report, opt-in to your email list, register, or click to chat. Through the use of web analytics, you will know which elements of your website (copy, design, graphics, etc.) need to change so that your conversion rates are increased. The mistake many website owners make today is not knowing what is working and what isn’t in terms of the “actionable” aspects of their websites – they’re simply taking a stab in the dark.

If you’re interested in web analytics for helping determine conversion rates and whether you need to further optimise your content, design, or other elements of your website, some of the tools to help you accomplish this include heatmaps available at DecibelInsight, Crazy Egg, or an analytics services such as Spotless Interactive. Of course you can always use Google Analytics, but be prepared to do some digging!