How to conduct CTA testing so that the conversion increased by 13%?

The fact that testing in Internet marketing is just a must have one will not even argue. Therefore, we decided to share useful information on how to make CTA testing more effective (the “call to action” button on the site is Call To Action). . Word to the author. Not so long ago I came across an article called “71 thoughts on A / V tests”. This article is an amazing material, filled with great ideas.

71 thoughts ?! Wonderful! Where do we start? Only here, where to find the time and energy to collect the material, which is then necessary to analyze and take stock of such a number of tests?

Important! This article will be especially useful for small business entrepreneurs who work without having assistants in the form of a full-time team hired to optimize conversion. Yes, and independent bloggers material does not hurt.

Good news. You do not have to do 71 tests today. You can do them gradually, a little later, in order to significantly improve your financial capabilities already this year and put a little more money in your pocket.
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In fact, you can make just one change right this week so you can see how big the difference is.

Hubspot followed this advice, taking it as a call to action. But, before I explain what they did, and how you can do something like this, let's make sure we understand everything correctly.

What is a Call to Action?

Simply put, a call to action is an urge that encourages or stimulates an audience / reader to take action right now.
In other sources you can find a longer definition:

Words (and / or messages) that convince the reader, listener or viewer and encourage them to do something immediately. For example, the phrases: “Write now”, “Right now”, or (on the Internet) “Click here”. Advertising without a call to action is considered incomplete and ineffective in all areas of trade.

Have you noticed that the definition above says: “Advertising without a call to action is considered incomplete and ineffective”?

This is just one reason, inhibiting the increase in profits. I recommend implementing a call to action at least now, if you have not yet used such a principle of building advertising.

Let's look at a few examples of calls to action:



This example of a call to action encourages the viewer to enter their email address and then click on the “Continue” button. This is commonly referred to as the lead generation direction.

Here is another call-to-action example used by the AAA Motor Club. Their list of lead generation activities focuses on the principles of "free planning."



Finally, here is an example of a pop-up call to action:



Now that we have already met with examples and identified what a call to action is like, we go further.

Hubspot tests call to action

As mentioned above, Hubspot checked the effectiveness of the call to action and saw a 13% increase in profits. Here is their test:



HubSpot checked the shape and style of our demo CTA in order to figure out what is best to use. CTA with button-like design (on the right) turned out to be much more efficient, conversion increased by 13%. And, surprisingly, a significant number of users did not attract the CTA, the picture of which includes an image of a sprocket.

13% effect on your business

To better understand how the conversion increased by 13%, let's go back to our friends at WiderFunnel.com. We’ll use their ROI calculator here (it's free).
Here is what it looks like:



Try to fill in such a table for yourself. Then you will see exactly what factors influence the 13% increase in conversion, and how this will affect your business.
As an example, the same worksheet filled with numeric data:



After you have entered your numerical information, the worksheet advises us to go to Account # 2 in order to see our results. In Account No. 2, we are asked to go to the page reflecting the “Potential opportunities for increasing conversion”. In this example - 13%:

Here are the results:



How to learn to see conversion optimization potential?

In this typical example of improving business efficiency, a 13% increase in conversion would add 10 sales transactions per month or $ 12,355.20 of profit to annual income in the first year alone! (Plus, it would be possible to reduce the cost of goods!)

So how can you increase the potential of your business by as much as 13% due to thoughtful changes?

4 Steps to Run A / B Test for Your CTA

After studying the results in Hubspot, they understood how this data can work in a particular business. You probably also can't wait to check?

1. Research and data analysis

Before you can prepare all that might work in the test, you need to collect some data.
If you are currently using a call to action, what is the return? Have you tested its effectiveness in the past? Why did you choose this method? Do you have any feedback or feedback on your current call to action?

If you do not have a current call to action, why not use the proposed opportunity and not create two versions to check which one is more effective?

To conduct a business profitability study without a current call to action, look at your target audience, your market segment. Any analytics of the infrastructure you have will help you. You could also get to know the opinions of businessmen in industrial forums, make support requests or interview clients to, as they say, “get inside their thoughts”.

The first step requirement is that you need to know your client well enough so that you can put forward a reasonable assumption about which call to action can produce an effect.

2. Use your data to make a forecast.

This step could also be called brainstorming.
Mainly - analyze your data, think about your client and make predictions about what methods and techniques could be better than what you currently have.

If you already have a call to action, your brainstorming may go something like this:

You: Our green button doesn't seem to work ...
Co-owner: I know that ABC checked the green buttons and saw a huge increase in conversion. Why this item does not work for us?
You: Perhaps because our dominant corporate color is green ...
Co-owner: Yes, the button just does not stand out ...
You: Let's try orange instead!

Or, an example of such a situation: “Our customers are very concerned about their security on the Web. Perhaps we should check the effectiveness of our protection and think about improving the privacy policy? ”

If your advertising does not use various forms of a call to action, you should try to implement two versions. Just remember to stick to the rule: testing one item at a time. The Hubspot recommend:

Without a doubt, you want the A / B test to be unambiguously informative. Since you invest time in it, you obviously want a clear and surely positive answer! The problem with multiple testing of various variables is that you are not able to determine exactly which one was the most important. You cannot, from the very beginning, say for sure that one page is better than another if there are three or four variables on each of them. You can not be sure also because, at first glance, it may seem that one of the variables actually damages the page. And while you can not take note of good items on other pages. Our advice? Make a series of basic tests with one variable to create a “portrait” of the most effective page.

In addition to the few examples above, there are thousands of ways that you could apply in your call-to-action forms.
• Relevant words. Just one thought: a specific “Click here” instead of an abstract “Yes!”
• Colour. Frank interest in the buyer can frank "confrontation" between your corporate color and contrasting colors.
• Location CTA. For example, upper right versus upper left.
• Style: "flat" graphics against "Web 2.0".

Even the shape of the CTA can be tested for effectiveness: a circle, a square, a rectangle.

The options are endless

I can check everything. Therefore, after you have spent time brainstorming, you can already predict which ONLY change you think has the highest chance of increasing conversion.
So…

3. Form the concept of testing

This step can be changed depending on the tools (methods) that you use and the test that you run.
At a minimum, you will need a performance measurement tool specifically for your A / B test, which will allow you to interpret the results, and two variable elements, the effectiveness of which you are testing.

4. Manage your testing

When you run the test, let it take its course for a while. But remember, in order to get accurate results, you must wait until the test is complete. This will allow you to more accurately determine the best option. To make sure that your results (or rather, their interpretation!) Are as accurate as possible, I recommend using the sample size calculator.

5. Analyze the results

After the testing is complete, it's time to analyze the data. Like last time, you will use new data to check and make a new forecast. Hopefully, the last test gave you something to work on and make the next forecast better.

Conversion optimization is an endless game.

Over time, the most effective ways to advertise a business that have won your tests will come to light. You will better understand your target audience and be able to make more and more sophisticated forecasts.

Have you checked the effectiveness of your CTA? Maybe share your experience?