Use heat maps to improve conversion rates

Use heat maps to improve conversion rates

1. Use a heat mapping tool to map 2,000-3,000 page views per page and per device type (desktop and mobile) before acting on the results.

Use a tool like Crazyegg, Mouseflow, Clicktale, Luckyorange, Clickheat (free), or Corunet (free). Do not expect actual insights on how users read a webpage with a hover map. If you use algorithm-generated heat map tools like Attention Insight, EyeQuant, or Feng GUI to get an ‘instant picture’ for usability research, do not take it for actual user behavior. Detect bottlenecks and usability issues with user session replays.

2. See where people click using a click map - check which elements, besides links, get lots of clicks, and decide whether to make these elements into a link or not.

Bright spots mean more clicks.

3. Use an attention map to see if key text and visuals are viewed the most.

Assess the effectiveness of the page design, especially above the fold area. Put the material that is most important to your business goals above the page fold. State the most important information in the first two paragraphs. Use subheadings, bullet points, and paragraphs to make the rest of your content more readable.  Display important information, like your value proposition, on the left side of the page.

4. See how far people scroll down using a scroll map and put what is important higher.

Check for abrupt color changes and improve the connection between the elements.  Add navigation cues such as a downward arrow, where the scrolling stops on longer landing pages. Insert a call to action at the bottom of the page. It can be a message or button prompting an immediate response or encouraging an immediate sale.

5. Record video sessions of people going through your site with user session replays to get qualitative data.

For example, you can use user session replays to watch how people fill out forms or identify problems of pages that are performing badly, or to see how fast users read, scroll, etc. This allows you to detect bottlenecks and usability issues such as: Where are people not able to complete actions? Where do they give up?