Lean Marketing Insights

Conversion Optimization Firm: Maximize Your ROI in 2026

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 19:59:02 GMT

5 Booking Page Leaks Costing You Reservations

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 02:00:34 GMT

Imagine this: A potential guest lands on your travel site's booking page, excited about that weekend getaway. But within seconds, they're gone—poof—off to a competitor's site that's smoother, faster, and just easier. Sound familiar? If you're running a hotel, vacation rental, or any travel business, these silent killers on your booking page could be draining your revenue without you even knowing.

As specialists in conversion optimization for travel sites at In The Vine, we've audited hundreds of booking flows. And we've seen it time and again: Small leaks add up to massive lost reservations. In fact, even a 1% drop in conversion can cost you thousands in bookings over a year.

But here's the good news—you can plug these leaks today and watch your direct bookings climb. In this guide, I'll walk you through the top 5 leaks we've uncovered, backed by real data from industry audits. I'll show you exactly why they're hurting you and simple fixes that put more money in your pocket.

Think of this as your roadmap to turning browsers into bookers. Let's dive in.

What's On This Page?

Leak #1: Your Booking Page Isn't Built for Mobile Thumbs

You're scrolling on your phone, trying to book a room, but the buttons are tiny, the form fields won't zoom right, and everything feels like a chore. Frustrated yet? That's exactly how your mobile visitors feel—and they're bailing fast.

Mobile traffic dominates travel searches, with over 50% of bookings starting on smartphones. But if your page isn't optimized, you're losing them. One study of 50 hotel sites found average load times of 8.2 seconds, way over the 3-second sweet spot where abandonment skyrockets.

The fix? Grab your own device right now and walk through the booking process. Note every pinch, zoom, or tap that slows you down. Then, tweak those elements—make buttons at least 44x44 pixels for easy thumb taps, ensure forms resize automatically, and test on multiple phones. You'll see conversions jump as guests glide through without a hitch, feeling like your site was made just for them.

Leak #2: Form Friction That's Scaring Off Ready-to-Book Guests

Picture a guest halfway through entering their details, only to wrestle with a clunky address field or a credit card dropdown that doesn't match their card. They sigh, close the tab, and book elsewhere. That's friction at work, and it's a reservation killer.

High-friction forms can tank completion rates by up to 20%, turning eager visitors into ghosts. Common culprits? Manual address entry without help and finicky payment fields that block autofill.

Plug this leak by smoothing the path: Implement address autocomplete powered by tools like Google Places API—it pulls up options as they type, hiding manual fields unless they click "Enter Manually" to reveal them. For credit cards, use numeric months (like 01 for January) to mirror real cards, and enable browser autofill so details populate instantly. Suddenly, booking feels effortless, and you'll capture those impulse reservations that used to slip away.

Leak #3: No Clear Context on What They're Actually Booking

Ever added something to an online shopping cart, only to forget what it was by checkout? That's the confusion hitting your guests if your booking page doesn't show a crystal-clear summary of their selection.

Without context, doubt creeps in—"Is this the room with the ocean view? What dates again?"—leading to abandoned carts. Ecommerce sites nail this with persistent summaries, and travel sites should too, as unclear details can cause 30% more drop-offs in the funnel.

Fix it by displaying a collapsible summary panel right on the page: Show key details like room type, dates, price, and add-ons at a glance, with an "Expand for More" option to reveal photos, amenities, and policies. It's like giving them a virtual receipt as they go, building confidence and locking in the booking before second thoughts hit.

Leak #4: Missing FAQs That Answer Burning Booking Questions

Your guest pauses at the payment step, wondering, "What if I need to cancel?" or "Does this include breakfast?" Without quick answers, they hesitate—and often leave.

FAQs are your secret weapon here, yet most booking pages ignore them, costing conversions when unanswered questions build resistance. Data shows pages with relevant FAQs see 15-20% higher completion rates, as they preempt objections on the spot.

To seal this leak, embed a compact FAQ section directly on the page, focusing on the most-clicked queries from your analytics—like cancellation policies, check-in times, or pet rules. Keep it to 5-7 items, with expandable answers for skim-ability. You'll ease minds instantly, turning hesitaters into happy bookers who feel supported every step.

Leak #5: Slow Load Times That Send Guests Running Before They Start

Click—wait—still loading? In that endless second, your guest's patience evaporates, and they're off to a faster site. Slow pages are a top offender, silently sabotaging your bookings.

Research reveals a brutal truth: 53% of mobile visitors abandon sites taking longer than 3 seconds to load. For travel sites with image-heavy booking pages, this is deadly—average tested load times hit 8.2 seconds, hemorrhaging potential revenue.

The solution is straightforward: Compress images using free tools like TinyPNG to shave off seconds without losing quality. Upgrade your hosting if needed, and run monthly checks with Google PageSpeed Insights to hit that under-3-second mark. Watch as faster loads keep guests engaged, boosting your reservation rates and putting you ahead of sluggish competitors.

Plug These Leaks and Watch Your Bookings Soar

There you have it—the 5 biggest booking page leaks draining your travel site's potential, along with proven fixes to stop the bleed. Implement these, and you'll not only save lost reservations but also build a smoother experience that turns one-time visitors into loyal guests.

At In The Vine, we've helped travel businesses just like yours boost conversions by 25-50% through targeted CRO audits. No more guessing—let's optimize your site for real results.

Drive More Traffic and Increase Conversions: Proven Marketing Tips for Online Retailers

Fri, 02 Jan 2026 18:01:17 GMT

Are you tired of pouring ad dollars into campaigns that fizzle out, leaving your online store buried in search results? As an online retailer, you know the game: attracting the right traffic is half the battle, but turning those visitors into loyal, repeat customers is where the real revenue magic happens. That's why today's marketing tips for online retailers zero in on two powerhouse strategies— SEO and Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) . These aren't fluffy theories; they're proven tactics to drive more qualified leads, slash bounce rates, and skyrocket your bottom line.

Drawing from real-world experiments and data-backed insights, we'll break down actionable steps you can implement today. Imagine slashing your customer acquisition costs by 30% while doubling your conversion rates—sounds like a dream? It's achievable. Let's dive in and arm your store with the tools to thrive.

What's On This Page?

Unlock a Flood of Organic Traffic with SEO Strategies Tailored for Retail Success

In the crowded e-commerce arena, ranking high on Google isn't just nice—it's essential for survival. Strong SEO for online retailers means more eyes on your products without endless ad spend. But how do you cut through the noise? Start by aligning your site with what shoppers actually search for.

Target long-tail keywords that match buyer intent : Skip broad terms like "shoes" and zero in on specifics like "waterproof hiking boots for women size 8." This drives qualified traffic ready to buy, boosting your organic rankings by up to 2-3x in competitive niches.
Optimize product pages for featured snippets : Structure descriptions with clear headings, bullet-point benefits, and FAQ sections. Retailers who've done this report a 15-20% lift in click-through rates, putting your products front-and-center in search results.
Build internal linking to guide shoppers deeper : Link related products and category pages strategically, like suggesting "complementary accessories" under each item. This keeps visitors engaged longer, signaling to Google that your site is a valuable resource—and improving dwell time by 25%.

For a deeper dive into these foundations, check out our comprehensive consulting SEO for Online Retailers page. We'll help you to get ranking faster.

Supercharge Your Checkout: CRO Tips That Turn Browsers into Buyers Overnight

You've lured them in with SEO—now seal the deal with CRO. This is where impulse turns into impulse purchases. Online retailers often lose 70% of visitors before checkout; smart CRO flips that script, potentially increasing revenue per visitor by 10-50%.

Streamline your navigation for frictionless browsing: Use mega-menus with visual categories and a persistent search bar. One retailer saw cart abandonment drop by 40% after simplifying paths to "Add to Cart," making every click count toward sales.

Leverage social proof with targeted testimonials: Place customer reviews and "As seen in..." badges near high-traffic products. Data shows this can lift conversions by 12-18%, as shoppers trust peer validation more than polished pitches.

Implement urgency triggers like limited-stock alerts: Display "Only 3 left!" or countdown timers on promotions. This FOMO tactic has helped e-tailers boost add-to-cart rates by 22%, turning hesitation into hasty buys.

A/B test your CTAs for maximum click appeal: Swap generic "Buy Now" buttons for benefit-driven ones like "Get Yours Before It's Gone – Free Shipping." Retail experiments reveal up to 30% higher engagement from personalized, bold CTAs.

Tie It All Together: Measure, Iterate, and Watch Your Retail Empire Grow

Marketing tips for online retailers like these aren't set-it-and-forget-it—they're a launchpad for ongoing wins. Track your SEO gains with tools like Google Analytics (focus on organic traffic and keyword rankings) and CRO progress via heatmaps and session recordings. Start small: Pick one tip from each section, test for two weeks, and scale what sticks.

The payoff? More sustainable growth, happier customers, and a store that doesn't just compete—it dominates. Ready to transform your online retail game? Implement these today, and if you're craving more tailored advice, get your free website strategy session below. Your next big sales spike is just a strategy away. What's your first move?

How to Increase ROAS: Proven Strategies for ROAS Optimization and Improving Your Return on Ad Spend

Mon, 22 Dec 2025 03:27:34 GMT

Hey, if you're running ads and feeling like your budget's vanishing into thin air without the returns you deserve, you're not alone. I've been there—pouring money into campaigns only to scratch my head over lackluster results. But here's the good news: by focusing on ROAS optimization, you can turn things around fast. In this guide, we'll dive deep into everything you need to know about Return on Ad Spend (ROAS), from the basics to advanced strategies that will help you increase ROAS and improve ROAS like never before. Let's make your ads work harder for you.

What's on this page?

What is ROAS in Marketing?

ROAS stands for Return on Ad Spend. It's that crucial number telling you exactly how much revenue you're getting back for every dollar you drop on advertising. Think of it as your ad campaign's report card—if it's high, you're acing it; if it's low, time to hit the books (or in this case, optimize).

In marketing, ROAS helps you measure the bang for your buck from specific campaigns. Unlike broader metrics, it zooms in on your ad efficiency, so you know what's working and what's wasting cash. We do this as part of our Conversion Optimization services .

What Does ROAS Stand For? Define ROAS.

ROAS is short for Return on Ad Spend. Simply put, it's the revenue generated divided by the ad spend. If you spend $1,000 on ads and make $5,000 in sales from them, your ROAS is 5:1—or $5 back for every $1 spent. It's a straightforward way to gauge if your ads are profitable.

ROI vs ROAS: What's the Difference?

You might be wondering, "Isn't this just like ROI?" Not quite. ROI (Return on Investment) looks at your overall profitability, factoring in all costs—like production, overhead, and more. ROAS, on the other hand, is laser-focused on your ad spend alone. It's great for tweaking campaigns, while ROI gives the big-picture view of your business health.

For example, a high ROAS might mean your ads are killing it, but if other costs are eating your profits, ROI could still be low. Use both to get the full story.

How is ROAS Calculated? The ROAS Formula in Digital Marketing

Calculating ROAS is dead simple: ROAS = Revenue from Ads / Ad Spend.

Say your campaign brings in $10,000 in revenue and costs $2,000—your ROAS is 5. Multiply by 100 for a percentage: 500%. Easy, right? But remember, track only revenue directly tied to those ads for accuracy.

ROAS Google Ads: Best Practices

Google Ads is a ROAS powerhouse if you play it right. Use Target ROAS bidding to let Google's AI optimize for your desired return. Start with at least 15-30 conversions in the last 30 days for best results.

Pro tips: Organize your account well, spy on competitors, track conversions meticulously, and test ad creatives relentlessly. Focus on high-intent keywords and refine your audience targeting to boost that ROAS.

How to Calculate Break Even ROAS

Break-even ROAS is where your revenue equals your costs—no profit, no loss. The formula? Break-even ROAS = 1 / Gross Margin.

If your gross margin is 25% (0.25), you need a 4:1 ROAS to break even. Factor in product costs, shipping, and other expenses. Use this to set minimum targets and avoid losing money on ads.

Improve ROAS: Strategies to Increase ROAS and Achieve Higher ROAS

Want to improve ROAS? Focus on the levers that matter. From the Power Law of CRO, doubling your conversion rate can supercharge profits and let you outbid competitors without breaking the bank.

Here are proven ways to increase ROAS:

Add negative keywords : identify and eliminate irrelevant search terms that waste your Google Ads budget.
Refine audience targeting: Use lookalikes and retargeting to hit people ready to buy.
Optimize ad creatives : Test visuals and copy that speak directly to pain points.
Boost conversion rates: Improve landing pages with faster loads and clear calls to action.
Leverage data: Use first-party data and AI bidding for smarter spends.
Build loyalty: Increase lifetime value through upsells and retention programs.

Case in point: One e-commerce brand jumped from 15x to 35x ROAS by optimizing Facebook ads with AI. Apply these, and watch your ROAS soar.

ROAS Benchmarks by Industry in 2025

What's a good ROAS? It varies. For e-commerce, aim for 4-6x; B2B SaaS might be happy with 3-5x. Overall average? Around 2.87x, but push higher for profits.

Use these as starting points—your break-even will dictate what's "good" for you.

What is a Good ROAS for Ecommerce?

For e-commerce, a solid ROAS is 4x or higher—meaning $4 back per $1 spent. But if your margins are slim, you might need 6x+ to thrive. Track your AOV and CAC to fine-tune.

ROAS Examples: Real-World Wins

Take InflataFish: They boosted conversion rate from 1% to 1.5%, slashing CPC by 40% and more than doubling ROAS. Result? Market domination.

Another: A fashion retailer hit 3x ROAS using cross-channel optimization. Or Loftie, who used Amazon Ads' contextual targeting to lift ROAS significantly.

Target CPA vs Target ROAS: Which to Choose?

Target CPA focuses on cost per acquisition—great for volume. Target ROAS targets revenue return—ideal when values vary. If your products have different prices, go ROAS. Tests show ROAS edges out for 54% of accounts.

ROAS Analysis: Techniques to Master Your Metrics

Analyze ROAS by breaking it into CR, LTV, and CPC. Use regression for ad spend vs. sales. Forecast with historical data and run scenario tests. Tools like analytics platforms help spot trends and optimize.

Ready to Supercharge Your ROAS?

You've got the tools now—definitions, formulas, strategies, and real examples to increase ROAS and master ROAS optimization. Start by calculating your current ROAS, identify weak spots, and apply one strategy today. Imagine the freedom of ads that pay for themselves and then some. What are you waiting for? Dive in and watch your business grow.

If you're serious about improving ROAS, consider working with us. Your ad dollars deserve better—make it happen.

SEO Tips for Travel Websites: Boost Your Visibility and Conversions in a Competitive Market

Thu, 11 Dec 2025 21:31:49 GMT

Imagine your travel website as a bustling airport terminal—full of potential visitors rushing in, but too many bouncing out without booking that dream vacation. That's where smart SEO for travel sites meets conversion rate optimization (CRO) to turn traffic into loyal travellers. In this post, we'll dive into practical tips tailored for travel sites like yours, drawing from proven strategies that help you rank higher (even in AI-driven searches) while guiding users seamlessly to conversions. Whether you're showcasing exotic destinations or offering bespoke tours, these insights will help you stand out.

We'll break it down step by step, focusing on understanding your audience , crafting content that ranks and converts, and testing for real results. Let's get your site ready to welcome more bookings.

What's On This Page?

Build Authority and Trust to Rank in AI Searches

Travel search is evolving fast with AI overviews dominating results—think Google SGE or ChatGPT pulling snippets. To get featured, start by establishing your site as an expert voice.

Cultivate brand mentions across the web : Earn shoutouts on high-authority travel blogs, forums, or news sites through PR or guest posts. For instance, share unique data like "Top 10 underrated European vineyards" to build unlinked citations that signal expertise to AI crawlers.
Prioritize factual accuracy and recency : Double-check every claim with sources and update pages regularly—especially seasonal content like "Best winter getaways." Mark update dates clearly to show freshness, preventing AI from skipping outdated info.
Use schema markup for structured wins : Implement FAQ Page or How To schema on guides like "How to plan a wine tour in Napa." This makes your content easier for AI to parse and display, boosting visibility for queries like "seo tips for travel website."

These steps not only help with AI rankings but also build user trust, a key CRO factor. When visitors see credible, up-to-date info, they're more likely to stick around and convert.

Optimize Content Depth for Engagement and Rankings

Shallow pages won't cut it anymore—AI and users crave comprehensive answers. Go deep to satisfy intent while addressing objections that block bookings.

Create expert, conversational content : Write like you're chatting with a traveler over coffee. Use question-based headings like "What Makes a Great Travel Itinerary?" and weave in original research, such as surveys on traveler preferences, to earn citations and keep readers hooked.
Refresh and cluster content strategically : Update evergreen posts (e.g., "Ultimate Guide to Canadian Vineyards") and link them internally to topic clusters. Test refreshes on a small scale first to measure traffic lifts—our tests show up to 300% gains with structured data like video schema on destination clips.
Incorporate cross-channel distribution : Test content ideas on social media first (e.g., Instagram Reels of hidden gems), then expand top performers into blog posts or YouTube shorts. This diversifies traffic and refines what resonates, turning tourism SEO efforts into multi-platform conversions.

By focusing on depth, you're not just ranking—you're creating "robot salespeople" that preempt questions like "Is this trip worth it?" and guide users toward that "Book Now" button.

Leverage CRO to Turn Traffic into Bookings

SEO gets them in the door, but CRO seals the deal. Drawing from real-world successes like optimizing travel deal sites, here's how to smooth the path to purchase.

Run customer surveys for insights : Use tools like Survey Monkey with incentives (e.g., "Win a free night stay") to ask open-ended questions. Uncover loves like "easy booking" or pains like "hidden fees," then highlight benefits on your homepage—think "No surprises: All-inclusive pricing with ABTA-like security."
Conduct usability testing and heatmaps : Tools like Crazy Egg reveal where users drop off. Test your booking flow remotely—fix "face-palm" moments, like unclear deal inclusions, which can boost conversions by 19% as seen in travel case studies.
Add testimonials and overcome objections : Place specific, verified reviews (e.g., "Sarah from Toronto: 'Seamless from search to suitcase!'") near key sections. Address concerns head-on without negatives—frame low prices as "Savings passed directly to you" to build rapport and reduce hesitation.

These tactics create a personal touch, speaking directly to "you" the traveler, making your site feel like an insider friend rather than a generic portal.

Test and Iterate for Ongoing Success

No strategy is set-it-and-forget-it—modern SEO and CRO thrive on data-driven tweaks.

Implement split testing : Use tools to A/B test changes, like enhanced deal descriptions or adding trust signals (e.g., phone numbers for support). Only roll out winners to ensure revenue lifts without risks.
Monitor AI visibility and analytics : Track referrals from LLMs and use heat maps to spot bounce triggers. Combine with internal linking to under linked gems, potentially multiplying clicks tenfold.
Go narrow for deep resonance : Target segments like "wine enthusiasts exploring Canada" with jargon and memes they love. This builds "That's me!" moments, aligning with values like sustainable travel to foster loyalty.

Remember, write as much as needed to cover the journey from pain (low bookings) to gain (thriving site)—there's no too long, only too boring.

Product Page Design For SEO and Customer Intent

ryan@inthevine.ca (Ryan Johnson) — Wed, 20 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

You might be wondering:

How do I create the best product page design? And how do I get it to rank in search?
You've gotten inspiration from the best product page design lists out there and perhaps even downloaded a template.

But:

Product page designs are great for inspiration but were designed for a specific audience with a specific intention.

So let's remember...

Our guiding principle for designing our product page is to understand the customer (their intention) and design for them.

Now here's the three steps we'll take for a great product page design:

Find Customer Searches Related To Your Product
Maximize Clicks With A Properly Designed Page Title, Meta Description, and URL.
What To Include In Your Product Page

1. Find Customer Searches Related To Your Product

A great way to find customer intention is to research what customers are looking for in search. It will also help to brainstorm the different problems customers have before doing a search.

For example:

If the solution you offer is grass cutting, then problems people might search for are getting rid of weeds and how to make your lawn green (like a golf course).

Now, let's create a list of keywords customers use related to your product with monthly search volume.

Here's the top resources I use for keyword research:

Here's some ideas to start your keyword research with:

Your product name and industry
Competitor product pages
Problems your product solves
Your product niche
Your product categories

Add all the relevant keywords to your list with monthly search volume.

1.1 - Find Related Keywords

Adding related words to your page will help Google know what your page is about.

For example:

If a search engine found your page about "apple". How would they know if it's about the fruit, the brand, or a pet's name?

If your page had related words like fruit, taste, and flavor then it's pretty obvious that your page is about the fruit.

Here's a free tool to find related keywords.

1.2 - Rank Your Keywords And Find The Gaps

Rank the keywords in your list by the most searches per month.

Visit the top 3-5 sites ranking for your top keywords using keyword explorer (linked above).

Create a list of what's missing (gaps). What do you like and don’t like on the page? You’re looking for ways you can make your page better like missing information, bad design, things that would help make a decision, etc.

2. Maximize Clicks With A Properly Designed Page Title, Meta Description, and URL.

The first step is to rank on the first page and get people to click your snippet in the search results.

The best way to get clicks is to create your search snippet beside the actual search results your targeting. You'll want to analyze the other snippets and ask questions like:

What keywords are they using in their titles?
Does their description have any keywords or related keywords?
Does their title offer a promise that's believable?
Is the title creating curiosity?
How are the other site URL's structured? Do they use keywords?

Here's a Google SERP Snippet Preview Tool to help you with creating your search snippet.

Another great way to get more clicks from search is to use modifiers like "2018", "best", "guide", "review". You can also use brackets to help the eyes move toward your snippet in the results. Adding it to the end of your title like "(With Pictures)".

3. How To Design Your Product Page

Designing your page without content is like creating a decoration. (Not very useful by itself.)

Here's the steps you can use to design an engaging product page:

3.1 - Use of keywords

Start the title tag with your keyword.
Wrap your title in a H1 tag.
Wrap your subheadings in H2 tags.
Add 2-3 internal links to your main content.
Use the main keywords in the image name and alt tags.
Use your main keyword within the first 100 words.
Use your related keywords in the main article.

3.2 - URL length

Research shows that the top ranking sites have a shorter URL:

3.3 - Long content

This study found that longer content tends to rank higher in search results. I would recommend aiming for 1000+ words of useful content.

Use these ideas to increase your content length:

Use the gaps you found in the first step.
Brainstorm customer questions that you haven't answered.
Look though keywords for ideas on what people are wanting to know.

3.4 - Dwell time

If someone hits their back button after viewing your page then that's a sign of poor page quality. It affects your rankings and your sales.

For example:

If you search for "product page designs" and clicked the first result. Looking at the page you see that it won't answer your question. You click back and look at the second result and find that it satisfies what you were looking for.

Google tracks that the first result didn't match what you were looking for. And if enough people do this the first result would go down in rankings.

This is why the length of time people stay on your page is important. Even if they weren't all coming from search results.

Here's what you can do to increase dwell time:

Have engaging and supporting multimedia (photos, videos) sprinkled throughout your content.
Use copywriter techniques like bucket brigades .
Have a responsive design for all the devices your customers use.
Put yourself in the customers shoes and answer all their questions related to your product.

The Marketing Research Process In 6 Steps

ryan@inthevine.ca (Ryan Johnson) — Fri, 01 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

For people who want to make clear business decisions and know what to do to reach their growth targets.

Most focus their budget on acquiring more visitors like everyone else. But with higher ad costs and competition your revenue per visitor is diminishing. This is why we follow a process for figuring out the best way to grow profits.

Use this six step marketing research process to make better business decisions for growth:

Define your objectives and problem.
Get inside the heads of your visitors/customers with in-depth research.
Understand what you can do to increase profits.
Measure results with a successful testing program.
Be confident in the impact your changes are making.
Increase your win rate and impact with a continuously updated customer theory.

1. Define your objectives and problem

The most important part is to start with the end in mind. It gets our mind looking for the right things.

Imagine we’re sitting together in a professional sport stadium. Looking around we see that the stadium is packed.

You close your eyes and I ask “How many red shirts did you see?”. You tell me you have no idea because you weren’t specifically looking for red shirts.

Now I ask you to look around and count how many red shirts you see. You gently open your eyes and start seeing red shirts throughout the stadium.

I call this the red shirt technique and we use it throughout the marketing process.

Typical examples of some objectives might be “How do we grow the business by 30% year over year?” or “How do we get more customers?”. Once you have yours it’s time to ask a couple questions which will help lead us into our research phase.

What’s stopping you from reaching your goal?
What area of the business is underperforming?

A great first step to answering these is to put yourself in the customer's shoes. Map out every action a customer has to take to buy from you. You’ll get the best results if you actually go through the process of becoming a customer.

Becoming a customer helps you understand the thought process in each step.

2. Get inside the heads of your visitors/customers with in-depth research

When doing market research always come with a question first. It helps you narrow down the data and tools you’ll need to answer it. After analysis you’ll often have more questions or might not have the data you need. If you don’t have the data you need then you’ll have to go and get it.

For example if I’m trying to figure out how to grow a business by over 30% I start with my funnel ROI and Profit Grid reports that help pinpoint some areas to look further into.

Some areas raise questions which further propels you into more data. Once you find a problem then you triangulate it with other data (quantitative and qualitative). Quantitative reports and tools tell you what is happening but it doesn’t tell you why it’s happening.

There’s lots of tools we can use for research but the trick is to use the ones that will help triangulate the problem and help you understand it.

Examples of market research include collecting and analyzing data from:

Analytics
Site walkthroughs
Heuristic analysis
Usability checklists
Competitor analysis
Customer Surveys
Heat maps
User tests.

While doing the research we need to keep a list of all our findings and insights so we can move on to the next step where we prioritize and create a deeper understanding.

3. Understand what you can do to increase profits

The 80-20 rule shows up here in that we want to know what the 20% of efforts will give us 80% of our results. We take all the insights from the research and prioritize them based on biggest impact and lowest development time. Giving us a roadmap for growth.

We also analyze the research notes to give us clues to the customer psychogram. So we know what they like, what their intentions are, what their objections are, and what persuades them.

You’ll also put together what types of core values customers have. Then compare it to what core values you’re aligned with compared to your competition.

4. Measure results with a successful testing program

We know where the problem is and we have ideas but we don’t know for sure what will work because we don’t have a crystal ball. Instead of the age old throw spagetthi at the wall and see what sticks we actually measure the impact of our changes to see if it moves us closer to our goals.

We keep score measured by number of tests run, the percent of winning tests, and the impact per successful test.

5. Be confident in the impact your changes are making

Your tests need to be analyzed for not only significance but accurate sample size and duration.

Do testing right or you end up just spinning your tires thinking you’re doing something but you haven’t left the parking lot. To see accurate results requires more than just statistical significance over 90%. You need a minimum sample size, conversions, and minimum two business cycles.

Here's a pre-test duration calculator and sample size calculator.

6. Increase your win rate and impact with a continuously updated customer theory

If you understand what made the difference, you can repeat that in next tests and dramatically increase your chances of increasing profits next time around.

The one who knows their customer the best wins.

How To Analyze Your High Traffic Pages For Better Conversions & Improve Bounce Rates. (With examples)

ryan@inthevine.ca (Ryan Johnson) — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 GMT

I perform website reviews using heuristic analysis. It’s a structured experienced based analysis of a website. It’s the same as an experienced mechanic knowing what's wrong with your car by looking at it. In the same way a conversion analyst can look at your website and tell you what could improve.

First we’ll map out the pages/steps it takes to complete the goal we’re optimizing for. Then assess each page in the funnel and answer these main questions:

Do the pages load fast enough?
Is the offer and how it works clear and understandable?
Are there any elements on the page distracting visitors from the main goal?
Does the landing page relate to what the visitor thought they were going to see?
Is the copy clear or confusing?
Is it easy for users to navigate through the site and know what they need to do?
Are forms easy to use?
Do users encounter error messages that confuse or deter them?

I take screenshots of each page and write comments with tools like Notable or FrameBench. Everything we observe needs to be double checked in analytics and user testing to make sure we get the truth. For example I might think the copy of the site is confusing. But your visitors who speak the industry jargon might not think it’s confusing at all.

Disclaimer:

This is not a thorough analysis of the site. It's a quick review of the homepage to help you learn how to analyze your high traffic pages.
This feedback is an educated opinion with experience optimizing sites.

An example of how to analyze an ecommerce store (petco.com).

I picked a random website for pet supplies (petco.com). We need a goal to optimize towards for this example. Looking at the homepage I would guess that their goal is for people to buy with repeat delivery.

Here’s their homepage critique on optimizing for people to buy with repeat delivery.

The homepage is lacking a clear value proposition. Why should I buy from you instead of your competitors? Because of their large social media following they could use social proof or start with their why .
Make the main goal more prominent in the visual hierarchy. The three main boxes (repeat delivery and food offers) are competing for my attention.
They don’t answer some top questions on how and why new visitors should get repeat delivery. I found the benefits after adding a product for repeat delivery.
The call-to-action labels aren’t clear on what will happen next. For example “Learn more” compared to “Learn how repeat deliveries can save you money”.
Learn more about repeat deliveries isn't relevant. Because not only does it not give that much more info but it doesn’t sell me at all on repeat deliveries.
Increase clarity and relevancy on buttons. “Shop Now” isn’t a great call-to-action. It should be relevant to what they’ll see next. For example “Get natural ingredient pet food” and “Get whole nutrient rich pet food”.
Questions that could come up when selling repeat deliveries: How do I know how many bags I need per month? What if I start having too many bags at home and want to delay the next one? How many more steps to create a recurring order? Is this more of a hassle? Do you get an email before it ships so I cancel/delay the next shipment?

An example of how to analyze a lead-gen site. (statefarm.com)

State Farm's main goal is to get leads through insurance quotes. Below is their homepage review using the process I use at the top of this article.

No clear value proposition. The main headline makes no sense. If I came into their office and said “Why should I buy insurance from you?” and they replied with the words from their headline “Save mass quantities. Do a discount double check.” I’d blink in confusion and be out the door. This is what they’re doing with their website.

The call-to-action buttons “Go” are vague and don’t give me an idea on what will happen next. Label your buttons with what people will get when they click it.
Make “Get a quote” or one of the other three more prominent. Check the analytics to see what people do most on the site.
The copy (or lack of) needs some work. How do I benefit from using your services? How is it better or different from the competition? Why do people trust you?
Reduce anxiety. How long will the quote take? How long do claims take to go through? What’s the service like after I pay? Always state your claims with proof.
There’s nothing that urges the visitor to get a quote now. Increase urgency with your offer.
There’s not enough information on the page to make a decision. Try selling someone insurance using only the words they have on their webpage.
The coneheads aren’t relevant to getting insurance and causes confusion.

How A Website Redesign Brought A 63% Lift In Conversions

ryan@inthevine.ca (Ryan Johnson) — Wed, 29 Mar 2017 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re thinking about doing a website redesign because your site isn’t mobile friendly or because of rebranding. I’ll give you the steps and process I took to get a lift in conversions with a national Canadian TV show website ( www.mynewday.tv ).

Before we can redesign a page or an entire website we need to know what is working and what is not working for your visitors. Making radical changes to a site can hurt your business if not done properly. There are many stories of businesses that paid for a new redesigned site that suffered poorly in conversions.

How do you know what is and isn’t working on your website?

We have to gather the data from the site and the people using it. We need to understand how people use the site and what the problems are. This research will help us answer some key questions about our visitors:

What brings people to the site?
What are people trying to accomplish?
What pages or elements on the page are preventing people from accomplishing their goals?
What aren’t people doing that we want them to?
What persuades some people to buy?

Understand how your visitors are really using your site.

First outline every step visitors need to take to become your customer. I use mind mapping software like MindNode or MindMeister to do this. This helps me understand the entire conversion funnel and now I can work on identifying areas that hold the greatest opportunity.

Digging through web analytics will help us understand our different visitor types and how they behave. Understanding these different visitors will give you clarity about how to organize your conversion funnel so you’re showing the right content, with the right call-to-action, to the right visitors, at the right time in their buying journey.

Next we can identify user experience problems with the site. Going through the steps we covered before and asking questions like:

Does the site load correctly in the browsers your visitors use?
Do the pages load fast enough?
Is it easy for users to navigate through the site and know what they need to do?
Is the copy clear or confusing?
Are forms easy to use?
Do users encounter error messages that confuse or deter them?

Gathering and understanding why visitors can’t and won’t buy.

I capture the voice of the customer through heatmaps, screen recordings, user tests, customer surveys, web surveys, chat logs, search queries, and support/sales staff. We setup tools like ClickTale , HotJar , or CrazyEgg on your site to gather some of the data listed above.

Now I can write a list of all the objections and usability issues for each step in the sales funnel. Highlighting the most common will show where the biggest opportunities are. Then we can prioritize these issues by checking out which pages are getting the most traffic.

Fix real problems with your website redesign.

I give the detailed list of issues I found earlier to the web team to start the redesign process. Polishing the parts that are working and re-thinking the parts that aren’t. My New Day TV implemented all the changes at once and realized a 63% improvement in their conversion rate.