Your conversion rates are dwindling, or maybe they\u2019ve been stagnant for a while. You\u2019re keen to change that by improving your digital experience, but you have limited internal resources or know-how. What\u2019s the solution?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leveraging an external optimization team can provide the expertise, clarity, and consistency you need to break out of your plateau.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Optimization is a process involving specific disciplines, steps, tools, and methods. You can\u2019t wing it or rely on creative ingenuity. This is why it\u2019s crucial to choose the right optimization team for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Aside from finding a firm that\u2019s respected for what they do, you want to team up with one that\u2019s got your best interests at heart and can pivot to meet your unique needs. Here\u2019s how we suggest evaluating an optimization team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Customer experience is everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Fierce competition and changing consumer expectations mean shoppers today will only engage with companies that make it easy to do so with an enjoyable customer experience. Companies that invest in CX outperform others, and optimization is a key piece in that puzzle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Take a household name such as Airbnb, crediting its focus on user experience as one of the key strategies that propelled a $10 billion valuation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Choosing the right optimization team to work with plays a big part in leveling up your user experience and, in turn, your success and results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lots of full-service marketing firms say they do conversion rate optimization, but how do you determine if they really know what they\u2019re talking about or if it\u2019s just a bullet point on their website?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, how can you know whether you\u2019re hiring a best-in-class optimization firm? Here are 7 ways to evaluate before you sign on the dotted line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before you join forces with any outside partner, it\u2019s important to know what you want to get out of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, it\u2019d be nice to double, triple, and quadruple your conversion rates, but you need to be realistic. Consider your budget, the resources you already have available, and what you\u2019d like to achieve in the next three months, the next six months, the next year, and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What can an optimization firm help you with?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are plenty more, but these are a few examples to help you set goals from the outset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your goals will determine what level of service or input you need from an optimization firm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are tons of agencies, firms, and consultancies out there. Some are better than others, and some are more suited to your needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When choosing the best optimization team for you, you must do your due diligence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Understanding your goals will put you in a good position to know what you want and need, but don\u2019t be afraid to ask questions throughout the vetting process. Make sure you understand their methodology and what drives their processes. Yes, it may take longer to find the right optimization team for you, but it\u2019s worth it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are some questions to pull from the running and make a final shortlist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The user is at the very heart of digital experience optimization. After all, the goal is to convert more visitors into customers. Achieving this goal involves studying users and your target audience, analyzing their behavior, doing focus groups with them, soliciting their feedback, and a host of other user-centered activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If an agency doesn\u2019t involve your customers (customer insights, customer feedback<\/a>, etc), there\u2019s simply no way they can truly optimize your site. They need to be able to get a clear picture of how people are currently using your site if they\u2019re going to identify and solve problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s a myth, perpetuated by shows like Mad Men, that real marketers are creative geniuses who rely on hunches and gut feelings. They get sudden flashes of inspiration that lead to an epic marketing strategy or campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In reality, the more you rely on marketing hunches and \u201cinspiration\u201d, the worse results you get.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best optimization teams are those who firmly attach themselves to the data, research, and experience, shying away from intuition. A foundation in decision-driven data analysis<\/a> helps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They know that the only optimizations worth implementing are those that are validated. If the data doesn\u2019t back up an idea, it shouldn\u2019t be implemented, no matter how strongly someone feels about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n#2 \u2013 What Guides Your Decision Making?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n