how to convince your boss on cro

@matt_lacey12 #SellingInCRO

MATT LACEY Head of Optimisation

@matt_lacey12

HOW TO CONVINCE YOUR BOSS ON CONVERSION RATE OPTIMISATION


Matt LaceyHead of Optimisation

at PRWD

Dave CannellPartner Manager

EMEA at Optimizely

YOUR WEBINAR HOSTS


Dan Pete

2006: Dan Siroker and Pete Koomen — Product Managers at Google

2008: Dan — Obama Campaign

2008 - 2010: Carrotsticks, Spreadly, and Y Combinator.

2010: Optimizely Founded

2012 (Oct.): 100,000th Experiment, over 1 Billion pages. #1 Website Optimization Platform

Late 2014: Raised $88M to go Global.

100K

$88M

Our Story

6000+ Happy Customers


Optimising online experiences since 2004.

Certified solutions partner with Optimizely.

Collaborative and open approach to optimisation projects.

Work with brands to analyse, research, test and optimise cross device online experiences.

ABOUT PRWD


GETTING STARTED

Conversion Optimisation is crucial for innovation, continuous improvement and business growth

Focus: Selling Conversion Optimisation, not broader sales techniques.


HOW WE MAKE DECISIONS


DECISION MAKING IS RELATIVE


“WE DON’T HAVE AN INTERNAL VALUE METER THAT TELLS US HOW MUCH THINGS

ARE WORTH.

RATHER WE FOCUS ON RELATIVE ADVANTAGE OF ONE THING OVER ANOTHER,

AND ESTIMATE VALUE ACCORDINGLY.”

DAN ARIELY


WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR US?

We need to be intentional and clear about how we present Conversion Optimisation for consideration within the business.

We need to think about how our proposal will be received and what other factors play a part in the decision-making process.


1. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

Identifying who you need to convince and what they already understand


“We’ll make the big changes and you can just do the optimisation.”

“Conversion Optimisation & Continuous Improvement are

part of our DNA.”


CONVERSION OPTIMISATION IS NOT JUST TESTING . . .

. . . BUT IT IS AN ESSENTIAL ELEMENT.


As marketers, we know how important it is to know your audience and prepare messaging accordingly. The same rule applies here.

Who do you need to convince and who is the final decision maker?

How do they make decisions? If you work closely with the person in question can what do you know about their personality that might effect how you present your business case.

KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE


2. KNOW THE FACTS

Tackling Risk and Myth Busting


“THERE CAN BE NO GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENT

WITHOUT RISK.” Neil Armstrong


1. The risk of faulty testsTHREE COMMON OBJECTIONS 2. The risk of poor performance

due to sub-optimal A/B test variations

3. The risk of not testing!

Mitigation: Thorough QA Process

Mitigation: Control traffic. Carefully monitor performance and react. Start small and demonstrate value.

Mitigation: Highlight the alternative of making decisions based on gut feel and intuition. Lose ground to competitors.


Speak the language of your company where possible.

If your senior managers or company culture dictates that you bring data, make sure that you do.

It may be that a compelling narrative backed up with case studies is more likely to be persuasive for your audience.

Prepare well and try to anticipate the type of questions that you will have to answer.

COMMUNICATION & DECISION MAKING STYLES


3. Defining Success

How to use numbers &letting the data do the talking


5% CONVERSION RATE IMPROVEMENT


Use KPIs and metrics that the business are familiar with and that really matter to them.

Think about how the figures are framed and to what they will be compared.

How can they be made to feel tangible?

•  Revenue Figures•  Comparison: e.g. more valuable than

opening a new store every month•  Competitors or benchmarking

BUILDING YOUR CASE


4. SPEND LESS,GROW FASTER

How to explain CRO’s impact on your marketing spend, customer

understanding and innovation


“WE TEND TO FOCUS ON COMPARING THINGS THAT ARE EASILY COMPARABLE - AND AVOID THINGS THAT CANNOT BE EASILY

COMPARED.”

DAN ARIELY


What is CRO being compared against?

•  Search Engine Marketing•  Paid Advertising•  Email•  Remarketing•  A Redesign

COMPARISON

How are competing activities measured?

•  ROI•  Conversion Metrics•  Engagement Metrics

How can you create favourable comparisons?


Based on a one month period for an ecommerce site, AOV of £60

SCENARIO

ACQ. Spend Sessions CR Revenue CR LiftRev Change

ROI

£100,000 285,000 3% £514,000 - - 514%



What happens if we reduce acquisition costs and reinvest it in improving CR?

SCENARIO

ACQ. Spend Sessions CR Revenue CR LiftRev Change

ROI

£100,000 285,000 3% £514,000 - - 514%

£90,000 257,000 3.45% £532,000 15% +£18,000 532%



What happens if we reduce acquisition costs further to deliver bigger uplifts?

SCENARIO

ACQ. Spend Sessions CR Revenue CR Lift Rev Change ROI

£100,000 285,000 3% £514,000 - - 514%

£90,000 257,000 3.45% £532,000 15% +£18,000 532%

£80,000 228,000 3.9% £600,000 30% +£87,000 600%


STOP THROWING MONEY AT A POORLY CONVERTING WEBSITE


5. THE FEAR OF LOSS

What stops people from taking action?


LOSS AVERSION


1. It explains why senior decision makers may be acutely aware of some risks associated with Conversion Optimisation

HOW LOSS AVERSION EFFECTS BEHAVIOUR 2. It explains why managers may be

rooted in methods that are currently working even if performance could be better

3. It makes it hard to rationally evaluate the value of Conversion Optimisation


THE POWER OF POTENTIAL LOSS

“What is the risk of not pursuing an optimisation programme?”

These could be risks to their business, but also to their personal business challenges.


LETS FINISH ON A POSITIVE NOTE...


CONVERSION OPTIMISATION CAN...

Become a high performing growth lever in your business

Deliver fantastic ROI

Significantly impact bottom line

Provide insurance against ideas that turn out to have a negative impact

Improve the performance of your acquisition efforts

Promote a test and learn culture within your business

Outgrow your competition

Make you a hero within your business


3. EXPECTED IMPACT

2. WHY CRO?

1.  OPPORTUNITY

PAUL ROUKE Founder & Director of Optimisation

@paulrouke

THANK YOU FOR JOINING THE WEBINAR

MATT LACEY Head of Optimisation

@matt_lacey12

bit.ly/CROresources

learn.optimizely.com

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