This article originally appeared on Web Profits blog.
Through many years of split-testing I have found that the key to a successful “above-the-fold” section of a website or landing page is a well-written headline and a strong call-to-action.
But where should the call-to-action button link to? That was what I wanted to find out.
What I Tested
I was tasked with optimising the conversion rate of a landing page for eHotelier.com that focused on converting prospects to join their email database. And I wanted to find out where I should link the main call-to-action.
Here’s what I tested…
- Original – The ‘Sign Up Now’ button took people directly to the form at the bottom
- Variation 1 – The ‘Sign Up Now’ button took people directly to the start of the content
- Variation 2 – I removed the ‘Sign Up Now’ button completely to make sure it was actually worth having the button
Here’s the landing page…
The Result?
The original page sent people to the form at the bottom however I found that by sending people just a few centimetres down the page to the beginning of the content I increased email signups by 22.6% at a 95% confidence rate. The second variation where I removed the button altogether also improved the conversion rate by 14.5%.
The Lesson
I first assumed that for a simple sign-up with little commitment such as an email subscription it would be better to link people directly to the form to speed-up their signup process. What I found from this test however is that getting people to read the sales copy before they get to the form is better than sending them directly to the form, most likely because they are have been sold on the benefits of subscribing.
