Win Report: How the Ovsiankina effect grew leads by 53%

Published: May 2025

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 implementing a two-step “Demo Request” form increased lead capture by 53%.

The original and variation screens for this test.

SFG20 is the UK industry standard for building maintenance specification. Its comprehensive library of schedules helps building owners and managers keep track of changes in legislation, regulation, and codes of practice. SFG20 sells cutting-edge software that helps customers ensure that buildings are safe, legally compliant, and maintained in a cost-efficient manner.

The primary method through which SFG20 acquires customers is via a 30-minute live demo with a product expert. These demos help reveal opportunities to support users and demonstrate how they can make the most of the platform’s flexible capabilities.

As part of our research, we asked customers:

“At what point in your purchasing journey were you actually convinced to try SFG20?”

They consistently describe the demo as the point where they were convinced to try the software. We saw responses like:

“Initial product demo.”

“After the demo.”

Knowing that demos are an important lever, how could we increase the conversion rate of the lead-gen form?

The original page (or control)

Here’s the original demo-booking page with the kind of lead-gen form that many companies use on their websites:

In addition to the standard requests for the visitor’s name and email address, the form also asks for job title, company, and phone number. As you’d expect—and our Wins Database proves—extra fields can lower completion rates, but SFG20 needs this information to best qualify their leads.

It’s a common dilemma: shorten your form and risk poor lead quality, or keep it long and lower conversions. This client faced that exact challenge, but cutting fields wasn’t an option. They needed a way to boost conversions without compromising the data they collected.

How to reduce the perception of a long form without cutting fields

People are more likely to start filling in a form if it looks short and easy to complete. One proven technique is to show just a few fields at first, and then reveal more after the user starts typing. This makes the form feel more manageable and encourages users to begin.

Once users start, they’re naturally inclined to finish. This behavior is rooted in the Ovsiankina effect—the psychological principle that people are driven to complete tasks they’ve already initiated. By getting them to take the first step, you harness a powerful urge to follow through.

The tested page (or variation)

The tested page took the same elements, but we only showed three form fields by default (First Name, Last Name, and Company Email Address).

The first step of the variation form, showing only three form fields. — Step 1 of the new form that…

The second step of the variation form, which expanded to reveal the remaining fields. — … expanded to include the additional fields.

Clicking “Book Your Demo” revealed more fields—a simple setup to test the concept. (A permanent version could also capture name and email in the CRM at step 1, even if the form is abandoned.)

We also added some new explanatory copy above the second set of form fields to explain why we needed this information, helping to justify the extra step.

The new form is simpler and cleaner, reducing perceived friction and taking advantage of the Ovsiankina Effect—the tendency for people to want to finish what they’ve started.

Results: A 53% increase in leads

During the test, we observed a 53% uplift in leads.

Small drops in perceived effort can drive huge gains; this 53% lift came not from fewer steps but from redesigning how they feel.

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 SFG20’s business and then to other clients.

If you want us to grow your leads 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 SFG20 for letting us share these insights (and for being such a great team to work with).

A few words from Jessica and Lisa at SFG20

Watch the full testimonial below, or read a transcript.

“Our results are pretty mind-boggling,” says Jessica Vella-Bone, Marketing Manager at SFG20.

Thanks to SFG20 for letting us share these insights (and for being such a fantastic team to work with).

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