Win Report: How becoming the customer helped us increase conversions by 26%

Published: August 2024

Win Reports help you to grow your business by showing our methodology at work. Each article highlights a real-world test, sharing the research, insights, and techniques that led to the win.

In the next three minutes, we’ll show you how a method marketing insight (and a small change) delivered a 26% increase in conversion.

The image shows the original and variation screens one above the other.

Have you ever wanted to become a Lord or Lady? If so, Highland Titles offers souvenir plots of land in one of two nature reserves in the Scottish Highlands that grant you the title. Customers can visit their land in person or use the company’s augmented reality app. The plots make popular gifts and have been featured by Forbes and Good Morning America.

Research: Method marketing

Part of our extensive research for every client is to try their product for ourselves. This process—Method marketing—draws inspiration from actors who immerse themselves deeply in their roles. (The canonical example is Robert De Niro’s stint as a real taxi driver to prep for his role in Martin Scorsese’s movie… uh… Taxi Driver.)

At CRE, going “method” means becoming real customers of our clients, using their website, making purchases, and bringing their products or services into our lives. This delivers tacit knowledge—the kind of understanding that can only be acquired through personal experience—like being a parent or having a hangover. (No matter how well someone describes them, you can only really “get it” by living through them.)

And while one of our consultants was “living through” the Highland Titles mobile checkout, they experienced a moment of doubt…

The original page (or control)

Here’s a page from the original website. Although Highland Titles sells plots of land, the “Fast, free shipping” message appeared beneath the header on every page.

The image shows the original mobile screen. — The Control: The header bar caused momentary confusion.

When reviewing the website, one of our CRO Consultants wrote, If I’m buying a plot of land, what am I being shipped?

Of course, the confusion may be momentary, but conversion rate optimization relies on relentlessly removing friction.

The tested page (or variation)

To see whether the “Fast, free shipping” was adding friction for anyone else, we tested an alternative message. Here’s what the variation looked like:

The image shows the variation mobile screen. — The Variation: The shipping message is replaced by social proof.

As you can see, we replaced “Fast, free shipping” with a quote from Forbes:

“This just may be the coolest gift ever” - FORBES

It’s almost impossible to have too much proof, and Forbes’ brand adds extra authority and credibility to Highland Titles. The word “gift” makes it a double win, as so many of the company’s customers are buying plots for someone else.

It’s a simple change to test and implement, but simple changes sometimes have a significant impact. As we say in our book, Making Websites Win, “highly converting websites are powerhouses of credibility and proof.”

Result: 26% increase in conversions (and a Lady of the Glen!)

During the test, we observed a 26% increase in the conversion rate and a 31% increase in revenue for the variation.

Plus, we now have a team member who is a Lady of the Glen. Result!

What next?

As usual, we added the test to our proprietary Wins Database, then looked for ways to apply its lessons to other parts of Highland Title’s business and then to other clients.

If you want us to grow your profits—quickly and efficiently—check if you qualify for a free one-on-one strategy session with one of our CRO consultants.

We’ll only work with you if we believe we can get amazing results together. Our success has come entirely from positive word of mouth, and we plan to keep it that way.

Thanks to Highland Titles for letting us share these insights and for being such a great team to work with.

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