What is conversion rate optimisation (CRO) and how can it be improved?
Conversion rate optimisation (CRO) includes tactics focused on the essential components of your website, including content, design, user experience and the positioning of call-to-action (CTA) elements. The aim is to develop a more appealing environment that motivates SEO-driven visitors to take certain actions
1
How do you determine conversion rates?
You can determine your conversion rates for your entire site or for a specific page. To do this, take the total number of conversions and divide it by the total number of visitors to your site/page in a given period of time. The equation is as follows
Total number of visitors / Number of conversions = Conversion rate
To get a percentage, simply multiply the result by 100.
Remember to explicitly define what defines a conversion on your site. It could involve starting a test phase, booking a free consultation or obtaining a resource. Then set a deadline for collecting information about your visitors.
If you received 1,000 separate visits to your site last week and 75 people downloaded your lead magnet, your conversion rate will be:
Then multiply by 100 to get the percentage:
What constitutes a good conversion rate?
You currently have a figure, but you're not sure whether it's favourable or unfavourable. The ideal method is to evaluate your rate against industry standards to assess your performance.
Various sources offer different standards for a ‘good’ conversion rate, but typically a rate of 5% indicates that your site is performing well. For example, Mailchimp considers a conversion rate of 2% to 5% to be favourable, while Leadpages considers 5% to 15% to be ideal.
What's more, ideal conversion rates differ depending on the sectors and the specific action you're evaluating. For example, in B2B e-commerce, the typical conversion rate is around 1.8%, while legal services have the highest conversion rates at 7%.
Total number of visitors / Number of conversions = Conversion rate
To get a percentage, simply multiply the result by 100.
Remember to explicitly define what defines a conversion on your site. It could involve starting a test phase, booking a free consultation or obtaining a resource. Then set a deadline for collecting information about your visitors.
If you received 1,000 separate visits to your site last week and 75 people downloaded your lead magnet, your conversion rate will be:
- 75 divided by 1,000 equals 0.075.
Then multiply by 100 to get the percentage:
- 0.075 multiplied by 100 equals 7.5 per cent.
What constitutes a good conversion rate?
You currently have a figure, but you're not sure whether it's favourable or unfavourable. The ideal method is to evaluate your rate against industry standards to assess your performance.
Various sources offer different standards for a ‘good’ conversion rate, but typically a rate of 5% indicates that your site is performing well. For example, Mailchimp considers a conversion rate of 2% to 5% to be favourable, while Leadpages considers 5% to 15% to be ideal.
What's more, ideal conversion rates differ depending on the sectors and the specific action you're evaluating. For example, in B2B e-commerce, the typical conversion rate is around 1.8%, while legal services have the highest conversion rates at 7%.
2
Benefits of conversion rate optimisation
CRO revolves around numbers, but it involves more than just improving statistics in general. The goal of conversion rate optimisation is to develop smooth user experiences that achieve the desired results. In particular, an effective CRO strategy can help:
- Reducing cost per acquisition (CPA): By improving conversion rates, you can minimise the need to implement multiple sustainable marketing tactics and channels to achieve conversions;
- Maximising the value of your traffic: When your site is designed for conversions, you can use your current traffic more effectively. While various forms of SEO can attract more traffic to your site, direct CRO adjustments generally need less effort, time and money;
- Personalised online presence: CRO helps you obtain information about your visitors and their preferences on the Internet. You can use this information to adjust your site and content to more effectively meet their needs, address concerns and solve problem spots;
- Increased revenue and competitiveness: High conversion rates can lead to increased sales that positively affect your brand's financial performance. In addition, website material adapted for conversions can give you a strategic advantage over competitors' unoptimised content;
- Discover new possibilities: Evaluating various elements of your site's conversion processes can help you discover subtle bottlenecks and overlooked conversion paths. These can be improved for better performance.
3
Disadvantages of conversion rate optimisation
While the advantages of conversion rate optimisation strategies can be appealing, there are numerous disadvantages that you should take into account. Here are the three most common:
- Over-optimisation: Sometimes over-optimisation can backfire and result in diminishing returns. Improving minor aspects may not result in significant changes, and you may find yourself investing more resources with minimal or no results;
- Danger of excluding users: In the process of perfecting strategies to attract a certain segment, you may inadvertently leave out other potential customers. Not all the changes you implement during optimisation will attract all buyers. For example, oversimplifying content can alienate more informed audiences looking for in-depth information;
- Dependence on data: CRO depends significantly on data, and without accurate data, you can't make informed optimisations. While this data-driven method is crucial, it can also limit your creativity.
4
CRO strategies
You can use various approaches to improve your conversion rates and raise the performance of your website, along with all your digital marketing initiatives.
A/B testing allows you to evaluate two versions of a web page to determine which one is more effective. If you already have a page that performs well, you can improve it further by experimenting with various components.
Try out various layouts, titles, content types and call-to-action buttons. Try implementing these changes and monitor the results to determine which variation produces superior results, and then improve the rest of your landing pages in a similar way.
In addition, you can use heat maps to illustrate the regions where your users click most on your pages. This provides a clearer view of visitor behaviour within the conversion funnel, helping you to identify bottlenecks and other key optimisation challenges.
Some experts argue that heat maps are superior to A/B tests because they provide a visual representation of user behaviour rather than just presenting data. According to Optimizely, heat maps can improve your optimisation strategies by 16%.A/B testing allows you to evaluate two versions of a web page to determine which one is more effective. If you already have a page that performs well, you can improve it further by experimenting with various components.
Try various layouts, titles, content types and call-to-action buttons. Try implementing these changes and monitor the results to determine which variation produces superior results, and then improve the rest of your landing pages in a similar way.
In addition, you can use heat maps to illustrate the regions where your users click most on your pages. This provides a clearer view of visitor behaviour within the conversion funnel, helping you to identify bottlenecks and other key optimisation challenges.
Some experts argue that heat maps are superior to A/B tests, as they provide a visual representation of user behaviour rather than just presenting data. According to Optimizely, heat maps can improve your optimisation strategies by 16%.
Website performance has a direct impact on the user experience, an essential element in optimising conversions. Put simply, if visitors have a bad experience on your pages, the likelihood of them converting decreases significantly.
The first thing to check is whether your pages load quickly. Google suggests keeping loading times under two seconds, and this isn't just a recommendation - it also serves as a significant ranking factor. Statistics show that 40 per cent of users will abandon a page if it takes more than three seconds to load. Use tools such as PageSpeed Insights to evaluate your pages and improve loading speeds.
In addition to speed, make sure your conversion pages are easy to use, with simple and clear navigation. These pages should also be fully optimised for mobile devices and devoid of glitches that could lead to crashes or freezes when visitors are completing actions, such as filling in forms.
Session recordings and heat maps allow you to understand how visitors interact with your conversion pages. The information gathered can reveal areas that require modification or identify problems that lead to user disinterest.
For example, your users readily share their email addresses, but are reluctant to provide more details, such as their telephone numbers or home addresses (which can be used for direct marketing purposes). Delete these two fields and observe the result. If conversions increase after the change, this indicates that your visitors are hesitant to share this information.
Surveys and user feedback provide important information about your audience's challenges and preferences. Feedback forms can reveal what users appreciated or found disappointing about your conversion strategies, including what motivated them to download a lead magnet or book a demo.
Ultimately, customising user experiences can also improve your conversion rates. Using personalisation methods and artificial intelligence allows you to provide personalised content, product suggestions and various individualised benefits that improve engagement and increase conversion rates.
Think about minimising the number of fields in your forms. This helps to reduce friction, ensure compliance with data privacy regulations and increase the likelihood of the form being submitted. It's better to ask for the necessary information and receive an answer than to ask for excessive detail and end up with nothing.
You can also try multi-step forms, which break down questions or actions into smaller components. This method guides users through the form without inundating them with excessive mandatory tasks.
Sometimes you may not need heat maps, full tests, troubleshooting or to try out various content options. In these situations, you can effectively utilise established marketing strategies that continue to attract visitors. These consist of:
Employing social proof: Experts agree that social proof can significantly improve conversion rate optimisation. Testimonials, analyses and case studies presented on the site - especially on pages aimed at conversion - can reassure visitors that your offers are credible.
Improve your CTAs: Clear, direct and captivating calls to action (CTAs) can increase your conversion rates. Experiment with various locations, colours and phrases to determine what is most effective. Make sure your CTAs are clearly designed and remain visible and separate.
Generate scarcity and urgency: Time-sensitive offers, out-of-stock alerts and countdown clocks can encourage visitors to take immediate action. Using FOMO (fear of missing out) in marketing combined with social proof can increase urgency and boost conversions.
Top-quality content influences your visitors to convert. Product images, full tutorials, product features, reviews and various content components can act as social proof just as effectively as customer testimonials and comments.
However, text alone often lacks persuasive power. Visual communication can improve your ability to convey messages, whether you're focusing on pain points or highlighting the specific advantages of your product or service.
- Use A/B tests and heat maps
A/B testing allows you to evaluate two versions of a web page to determine which one is more effective. If you already have a page that performs well, you can improve it further by experimenting with various components.
Try out various layouts, titles, content types and call-to-action buttons. Try implementing these changes and monitor the results to determine which variation produces superior results, and then improve the rest of your landing pages in a similar way.
In addition, you can use heat maps to illustrate the regions where your users click most on your pages. This provides a clearer view of visitor behaviour within the conversion funnel, helping you to identify bottlenecks and other key optimisation challenges.
Some experts argue that heat maps are superior to A/B tests because they provide a visual representation of user behaviour rather than just presenting data. According to Optimizely, heat maps can improve your optimisation strategies by 16%.A/B testing allows you to evaluate two versions of a web page to determine which one is more effective. If you already have a page that performs well, you can improve it further by experimenting with various components.
Try various layouts, titles, content types and call-to-action buttons. Try implementing these changes and monitor the results to determine which variation produces superior results, and then improve the rest of your landing pages in a similar way.
In addition, you can use heat maps to illustrate the regions where your users click most on your pages. This provides a clearer view of visitor behaviour within the conversion funnel, helping you to identify bottlenecks and other key optimisation challenges.
Some experts argue that heat maps are superior to A/B tests, as they provide a visual representation of user behaviour rather than just presenting data. According to Optimizely, heat maps can improve your optimisation strategies by 16%.
- Improving site efficiency
Website performance has a direct impact on the user experience, an essential element in optimising conversions. Put simply, if visitors have a bad experience on your pages, the likelihood of them converting decreases significantly.
The first thing to check is whether your pages load quickly. Google suggests keeping loading times under two seconds, and this isn't just a recommendation - it also serves as a significant ranking factor. Statistics show that 40 per cent of users will abandon a page if it takes more than three seconds to load. Use tools such as PageSpeed Insights to evaluate your pages and improve loading speeds.
In addition to speed, make sure your conversion pages are easy to use, with simple and clear navigation. These pages should also be fully optimised for mobile devices and devoid of glitches that could lead to crashes or freezes when visitors are completing actions, such as filling in forms.
- Understand the needs of your target audience
Session recordings and heat maps allow you to understand how visitors interact with your conversion pages. The information gathered can reveal areas that require modification or identify problems that lead to user disinterest.
For example, your users readily share their email addresses, but are reluctant to provide more details, such as their telephone numbers or home addresses (which can be used for direct marketing purposes). Delete these two fields and observe the result. If conversions increase after the change, this indicates that your visitors are hesitant to share this information.
Surveys and user feedback provide important information about your audience's challenges and preferences. Feedback forms can reveal what users appreciated or found disappointing about your conversion strategies, including what motivated them to download a lead magnet or book a demo.
Ultimately, customising user experiences can also improve your conversion rates. Using personalisation methods and artificial intelligence allows you to provide personalised content, product suggestions and various individualised benefits that improve engagement and increase conversion rates.
- Make your forms simple
Think about minimising the number of fields in your forms. This helps to reduce friction, ensure compliance with data privacy regulations and increase the likelihood of the form being submitted. It's better to ask for the necessary information and receive an answer than to ask for excessive detail and end up with nothing.
You can also try multi-step forms, which break down questions or actions into smaller components. This method guides users through the form without inundating them with excessive mandatory tasks.
- Use proven marketing strategies
Sometimes you may not need heat maps, full tests, troubleshooting or to try out various content options. In these situations, you can effectively utilise established marketing strategies that continue to attract visitors. These consist of:
Employing social proof: Experts agree that social proof can significantly improve conversion rate optimisation. Testimonials, analyses and case studies presented on the site - especially on pages aimed at conversion - can reassure visitors that your offers are credible.
Improve your CTAs: Clear, direct and captivating calls to action (CTAs) can increase your conversion rates. Experiment with various locations, colours and phrases to determine what is most effective. Make sure your CTAs are clearly designed and remain visible and separate.
Generate scarcity and urgency: Time-sensitive offers, out-of-stock alerts and countdown clocks can encourage visitors to take immediate action. Using FOMO (fear of missing out) in marketing combined with social proof can increase urgency and boost conversions.
- Use different types of content
Top-quality content influences your visitors to convert. Product images, full tutorials, product features, reviews and various content components can act as social proof just as effectively as customer testimonials and comments.
However, text alone often lacks persuasive power. Visual communication can improve your ability to convey messages, whether you're focusing on pain points or highlighting the specific advantages of your product or service.
5
CRO tools for success
As well as effective strategies, you have a range of CRO tools available to evaluate various elements of your site and implement changes that will improve your conversion rate.
Plerdy is a comprehensive solution that offers A/B testing, SEO and CRO to improve the user experience and increase site performance. Its extensive package provides endless A/B testing, deep scroll tracking and traffic source evaluation. It also emphasises usability concerns and offers dynamic heat maps that record user activity in real time, displaying aspects such as text selection, scroll depth and cursor hover.
In addition, Plerdy provides pop-up forms and NPS functionality with more than 25 customisation options. You can create conversion funnels, examine various abandonment points and also capture user browsing behaviour, which can be categorised by device and traffic sources.
Finally, Plerdy provides an automated SEO analysis tool and detailed e-commerce monitoring to help you examine product engagement.
Hotjar is a robust analysis and feedback tool used by website owners, marketing professionals and product teams to understand user behaviour on their websites or web applications. It helps companies improve the user experience, maximise conversion rates and make data-driven decisions.
Below are several of Hotjar's main features:
Heat maps: Hotjar offers visual heat maps that indicate where users click, scroll and navigate on a web page. This helps to determine which sections of a page attract attention and which are ignored.
Session recordings: Hotjar allows users to view recordings of visitor sessions on their site. This allows site administrators to monitor user interactions, including what they click on, where they encounter difficulties and where they leave the site.
Surveys and polls: You can set up surveys and polls on the site to collect direct feedback from your audience. This helps you gather important information about users' preferences, problems and requirements.
Conversion funnels: Hotjar monitors and illustrates user paths on your website, highlighting where users disengage in the conversion journey. This helps you recognise areas where you can improve the user experience to increase conversions.
Forms analysis: Offers an understanding of user engagement with the forms on your site, identifying fields that may not be clear or that lead to abandonment.
User feedback: Hotjar offers tools to collect feedback from users, such as the option to comment or rate specific pages or experiences.
In short, Hotjar is a tool designed to help companies gain in-depth knowledge of user actions and make informed choices about improving their websites to improve engagement, satisfaction and conversions.
- Plerdy
Plerdy is a comprehensive solution that offers A/B testing, SEO and CRO to improve the user experience and increase site performance. Its extensive package provides endless A/B testing, deep scroll tracking and traffic source evaluation. It also emphasises usability concerns and offers dynamic heat maps that record user activity in real time, displaying aspects such as text selection, scroll depth and cursor hover.
In addition, Plerdy provides pop-up forms and NPS functionality with more than 25 customisation options. You can create conversion funnels, examine various abandonment points and also capture user browsing behaviour, which can be categorised by device and traffic sources.
Finally, Plerdy provides an automated SEO analysis tool and detailed e-commerce monitoring to help you examine product engagement.
- Hotjar
Hotjar is a robust analysis and feedback tool used by website owners, marketing professionals and product teams to understand user behaviour on their websites or web applications. It helps companies improve the user experience, maximise conversion rates and make data-driven decisions.
Below are several of Hotjar's main features:
Heat maps: Hotjar offers visual heat maps that indicate where users click, scroll and navigate on a web page. This helps to determine which sections of a page attract attention and which are ignored.
Session recordings: Hotjar allows users to view recordings of visitor sessions on their site. This allows site administrators to monitor user interactions, including what they click on, where they encounter difficulties and where they leave the site.
Surveys and polls: You can set up surveys and polls on the site to collect direct feedback from your audience. This helps you gather important information about users' preferences, problems and requirements.
Conversion funnels: Hotjar monitors and illustrates user paths on your website, highlighting where users disengage in the conversion journey. This helps you recognise areas where you can improve the user experience to increase conversions.
Forms analysis: Offers an understanding of user engagement with the forms on your site, identifying fields that may not be clear or that lead to abandonment.
User feedback: Hotjar offers tools to collect feedback from users, such as the option to comment or rate specific pages or experiences.
In short, Hotjar is a tool designed to help companies gain in-depth knowledge of user actions and make informed choices about improving their websites to improve engagement, satisfaction and conversions.
6
FAQ
- What is conversion rate?
- Why is conversion rate important in 2025?
- What factors influence the conversion rate?
- How do you calculate the conversion rate?
- What is a good conversion rate in 2025?
- How can I improve my conversion rate?
- What is conversion rate optimisation (CRO)?
- How will emerging technologies impact conversion rates in 2025?
- What effect do social networks have on conversion rates?
- How does page design influence conversion rates?
- How can I use data to improve my conversion rate?
- What are the differences between desktop and mobile conversion rates?
7
Summary
How to improve website conversion rate?
- Define Clear Conversion Objectives;
- Create a Clean and Attractive Design;
- Use Clear and Direct CTAs;
- Offer Social Proof and Testimonials;
- Optimize for Mobile Devices;
- Improve Page Load Speed;
- Offer Quality and Relevant Content;
- Use Urgency and Scarcity Tests;
- Run A/B Tests Regularly;
- Simplify the Conversion Process;
- Offer Guarantees and Security;
- Monitor and Analyse Performance.
Improving your website for conversions allows you to make the most of the traffic you've already attracted, while improving the current design and user experience. This method is often cost-effective and provides a quick way to improve your digital marketing strategies without the need to develop new assets or start new campaigns.
However, successful CRO requires skill and knowledge. It can take a lot of time, especially if you're not familiar with adjusting features such as page designs or CTAs that may require design expertise. Therefore, the best option is to collaborate with a competent CRO team that can quickly implement the necessary changes, resulting in significant improvements.
However, successful CRO requires skill and knowledge. It can take a lot of time, especially if you're not familiar with adjusting features such as page designs or CTAs that may require design expertise. Therefore, the best option is to collaborate with a competent CRO team that can quickly implement the necessary changes, resulting in significant improvements.
Transform your brand today! Click to find out how professionals achieve great success - all our marketing articles!
- Unlock Facebook Ads Secrets: Boost Your Sales in 2025!
- Master Landing Pages: Boost Conversions in 2025 Now!
- What Is a Blog? Unlock Its Power in 2025!
- Boost Your Brand with SMM: The Ultimate 2025 Guide!
- Email Marketing in 2025: Secrets to Skyrocket Engagement!
- Master Online Reputation Management in 2025: Here's How!
- What Are Optimal Conversion Rates in 2025? Find Out Now!
- What is a Digital Marketing Agency in 2025? Learn More!
- Top Digital Marketing Channels in 2025: Must-Know Tips!
- 50 Key Email Marketing Statistics in 2025
