Testing Methodologies Said Most Valuable For Improving Conversion Rates

November 4, 2013

This article is included in these additional categories:

Analytics, Automated & MarTech | Data-driven | Digital | Mobile Phone | Tablet

EconsultancyRedEye-Most-Valuable-Methods-for-Improving-Conversion-Rates-Nov2013Marketers from around the world (but primarily from the UK) say that conversion rate optimization is crucially important to their online marketing strategies, per results from a study [download page] produced by Econsultancy in association with RedEye. But which methods are the most valuable for improving conversion rates? Much as with last year’s study, in-house marketers using a variety of testing methodologies consider them to be highly valuable.

This year, A/B testing and multivariate testing top the list, with about 6 in 10 users finding each to be highly valuable. Usability testing (55% rating it highly valuable) is close behind, followed by customer journey analysis (52%) and segmentation (51%). Towards the bottom of the list lie copy optimization (35%) and competitor benchmarking (26%), with relatively few considering them highly valuable, but a majority seeing them as quite valuable.

Results from the study show varying levels of adoption of these techniques. A/B testing emerges as the most commonly used method for improving conversion rates, by 52% of respondents. Multivariate testing, though, is being used by only 22% of respondents. That likely relates to implementation difficulties: 60% reported some difficulties implementing multivariate testing to improve conversion rates.

Despite those struggles, 42% of respondents plan to use multivariate testing in the future, and 46% will conduct usability testing. Those expectations remain behind the more popular A/B testing, which roughly two-thirds of company marketers plan to employ.

Other Findings:

  • Company marketers most commonly test websites (71%), followed by email (60%) and landing pages (59%). Only 7% don’t test anything.
  • The most popular website elements tested are call-to-action buttons (74%) and page layout (70%).
  • Among those company respondents who test their websites, a majority 60% conduct 1 (40%) or 2 (20%) A/B or multivariate tests per month.
  • The most important aspect for a successful testing strategy is defining its goals and objectives, per company respondents, followed by prioritizing what to test.
  • While A/B testing is the most common testing method for desktop websites, usability testing is preferred for mobile websites, tablets, and mobile applications.

About the Data: This is Econsultancy’s fifth Conversion Rate Optimization Report carried out in association with RedEye. There were almost 1,000 respondents to the research request, which took the form of an online survey in July and August 2013. Respondents included both client-side (in-house) organizations who want to improve their conversion rates (54%), and agencies, vendors or consultancies (supply-side) who are involved in trying to improve conversion rates for their clients (46%). The results in this article are limited to client-side organizations.

A majority 67% of client-side respondents are UK-based.

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