64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer
Written by: Anthony Garcia
Just getting started with online testing? Getting ready to take Google Website Optimizer out for a spin? Here are 64 tips on elements you can test and some helpful info to get you going.
Calls to Action
- 1.) Is your call to action distinctive? Does it stand out on the page?
2.) Button language and/or hyperlink anchor text
3.) B2B Concerns - Are you asking leads to submit?
4.) Button Colors & Shapes
Point of Action Assurances
- 5.) Privacy policy: is it easy to understand?
6.) Return policy and 3rd-party security verification: are they prominent?
Fonts
- 7.) Choice of font
8.) Readability: how easy are your fonts to read?
9.) To bold or not to bold…
Headlines
- 10.) Use fractions or percentages to prove your claim.
11.) Ask questions in the headline.
12.) Use words that evoke emotion.
13.) Different types of formatting: bolding, fonts, colors, capitalizations, sizes
14.) Number of words used in the headline
15.) Use exclamation points.
16.) Use text to convey the benefits versus the features of your products or services.
17.) Self-focused (we/I) versus customer-focused text (you)
18.) Use quotations in the headline (consider the length of the headline).
19.) Reading level of the headline
Get examples and more details on testing your headlines
Product Copy
- 20.) Is the copy more than just a blurb?
21.) How enticing is the copy?
Product Images
- 22.) Present different Image sizes.
23.) Pay attention to image quality, it affects the perceived value.
24.) Does the image show the product in a different context? (If you are selling tents, are you presenting the package or an image of the constructed tent?)
25.) Product zoom and/or different angles
26.) How enticing is the image?
Product Reviews
- 27.) Do you use Product Reviews?
28.) Do you provide more than just a simple score? Try a more multidimensional scoring system (i.e., quality, support and setup scores).
29.) Are there positive and negative reviews, transparency is important?
Category Pages
- 30.) Are you accounting for customers early in the buying process when they don’t know the terms associated with the product?
31.) Are you making it easy for those who know approximately what they want?
32.) How quickly can those who know exactly what they want find their product? Ask the big three questions.
About Us Pages
- 33.) Do you tell the story of your company?
34.) Are you doing something more than just posting a mission statement? Take advantage of the about us page by letting visitors see the personality and the people behind your company.
Contact Us Pages
- 35.) Build more effective ‘Contact Us’ pages. Make it easy for them to find the information they seek.
36.) Whom should they contact?
37.) How soon can they expect a response?
Forms
- 38.) How intimidating are your forms? Too many drop-downs and long text boxes make forms seem intimidating.
39.) Remove unnecessary drop-downs.
40.) Remove reset buttons.
Shopping Cart Tips
- 41.) Check how many steps are in your checkout process.
42.) Include a “Progress Indicator” on each checkout page.
43.) Provide a link back to the product.
44.) Add pictures inside the basket.
45.) Provide shipping costs as early in the process as possible.
46.) Show stock availability on the product page.
47.) Make it obvious what to click next.
48.) Make it easy for the shopper to edit her shopping cart.
49.) Make it your fault if visitors input something incorrectly.
50.) Make shoppers aware that you’re a real entity; give them contact info.
51.) Give the visitor the option to call.
52.) Make it always about your new customer, do not force a new registration instead make it a part of the checkout.
53.) Add 3rd party reinforcement messages.
54.) Present coupon codes carefully.
55.) Deal with pricing issues head-on, include a price match guarantee.
56.) GTC (”Get the Cash) - offer numerous payment options.
57.) Offer point-of-action reassurance; make anything the visitor may be concerned about available and visible during checkout.
58.) Save it for them. Save their cart in case they want to come back later.
59.) When all else fails, survey. If they didn’t complete the checkout, ask them why.
Get more examples and more information about these shopping cart tips in “Save the Sale.”
Load Times
- 60.) Test your load time. Also, be aware of how fast a page appears to load. Shrink the file sizes of your images, clean your code, etc.
Offer Incentives
- 61.) Test different incentives; discounts, __% off, added value.
Online Testing 101
- 62.) Learn proper testing methods
63.) Practice effective testing
64.) Never give up
Welcome to the world of website optimization! Why travel it alone? At the very least get ahead of the game.
[UPDATE: Bloggers, don’t forget to add Content Robot’s Google Website Optimizer plugin for WordPress.]
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Written by:Anthony Garcia
64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Optimizer…
Great post by Shaq at Grokdotcom that provides a checklist of website elements worth optimizing!…
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Checking out Google’s Website Optimizer, a few things caught my eye. First of all, the help section is VERY helpful. Not only does it address possible questions about how to, why to, and when to… but it makes use of…
Those are some great general tips for online split testing.
If anyone is interested in Google Website Optimizer (GWO) specifics, here are a couple of great resources:
Advanced Tips and Tricks for GWO:
http://www.prusak.com/archives/2007-03-29/get-the-most-out-of-google-website-optimizer-tips-tricks/
Google groups for general discussion on GWO:http://groups.google.com/group/google-website-optimizer
Ophir, You must not have seen the SEVEN specific things we offer at http://www.grokdotcom.com/googlewebsiteoptimizer/
Thanks for the list and helpful links. This site helps me focus on conversions. I need to come here more.
[…] 64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer » Conversion Rate Marketing Blog –>GrokDotCom by Future Now, Inc (tags: websiteoptimizer) Share and Enjoy: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. […]
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[…] 64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer and 101 Easy ways to Use Google Website Optimizer provide more test ideas. […]
[…] Check out this information packed article “101 Ways to Use Google’s Website Optimizer” for tips on using this tool designed to improve conversion rates. Another article, “64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer” lists elements of your website to test with Google’s Optimizer. Posted by lritchie - Posted in Google […]
Thanks for all the great optimization tips!
thanks for the tips - this is great!
[…] 64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer. […]
Hi,
That was a great write up.
It is so detailed and extensive that I have bookmarked this page!
Some of the things are basic but so essential.We tend to forget those while creating and optimizing the websites.
Thanks a ton!
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Hello
Can anyone recommend any shopping cart which supports Google website optimizer ?
[…] 64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer […]
[…] 64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer […]
Google Website optimizer is a great addition to the tools provided by Google to make your split testing easier.
As for a shopping cart, why not just use google checkout.
[…] can, to some extent, predict customers’ movements if you observe through testing and extrapolate the results into the larger design. Observation requires a laboratory, even if it […]
Hi Garcia,
This fine, absolutely fine post is probably mislabeled. I had been ignoring it because it sounded like a tactical, 101 GWO tutorial.
Instead, it’s a guide and a checklist for all sorts of tests!
[…] http://www.grokdotcom.com/2007/04/03/64-tips-for-getting-started-with-google-optimizer/ 64 Tips for Getting Started with Google Website Optimizer Getting ready to take Google Website Optimizer out for a spin? Here are 64 tips on elements you can test and some helpful info to get you going. … […]