It seems as if the modern world of online marketing is laden with a veritable “alphabet soup” of acronyms and technical terms. SEO, CRM, B2B and B2C represent a handful of examples. One lesser-known concept is known as conversion rate optimisation. Otherwise referred to as CRO, this notion will have a profound impact upon the success of any e-commerce portal. Let us take an in-depth look at the principles behind CRO as well as its applications in order to appreciate its relationship with online sales solutions in general.
Conversion Rate Optimisation Defined
The title of this principle goes a long way towards explaining its main purpose. The core idea is to increase the number of website visitors who choose to take a specific action. Examples can include requesting more information, filling out a contact form or completing a purchase. So, it is clear that a conversion does not necessarily have to represent a sale in these regards.
The process of CRO involves evaluating the engagement process between your website and the visitor. Some of the variables which will often be analysed include:
- Click-through rates.
- How long a visitor remains on a page.
- The ratio between the number of sales and the number of visitors.
- The number of subscriptions.
- The size of the average purchase.
To break down CRO into its simplest terms, it is defined as the total number of instances when a visitor completes a certain goal divided by the aggregate website traffic. For example, let’s imagine that 1,000 visitors navigated to your website during a single 24-hour period. 50 of these individual decided to take some action (such as signing up for an email list). The associated CRO would represent five percent (1,000 divided by 50).
How Can CRO Benefit E-Commerce Solutions?
The most obvious advantage is that higher conversion optimisation rates are associated with increased revenue. There are nonetheless a number of other potent benefits to ecommerce platforms.
In terms of SEO, you will be better able to understand the needs and requests of your customers. This type of insight can enable you to develop more palatable marketing campaigns as well as to address any minor issues with a proactive stance. By using the analytical shopping cart tools provided by Shopify, you can also increase levels of trust; causing clients to remain more loyal over time. You will likewise enhance your ROI levels by targeting in-house efforts towards a known outcome (for instance, focusing upon a specific audience or geographical region). Conversion rate optimisation therefore emphasises the undeniable “human” aspect of the sales experience just as it stresses basic financial analytics.
Conversion rate optimisation might be rather unfamiliar when compared to other terms such as SEO or big data solutions, but the fact of the matter is that it just as important from a sales point of view. Appreciating the role that it plays within the world of e-commerce will place you on the path towards success.
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