OptiCon 2014

Copyright © 2014, SiteTuners – All Rights Reserved. #OptiCon2014 @tim_ash
The Conversion Maturity Model:
A Roadmap to Profitability
Tim Ash - CEO
San Francisco – April 17, 2014

The Conversion Maturity Model:
A Roadmap To Profitability
Tim Ash – CEO SiteTuners, Chairperson of Conversion Conference

About SiteTuners
• San Diego based conversion rate optimization agency
• Large and small company clients worldwide
Practice areas:
– Conversion-focused website blueprints (full redesigns & quick facelifts)
– Landing page test plans & testing strategy development
– Conversion management, team mentoring & training

M O R E T H A N
s i n c e 2 0 0 2
1200CLIENTS

Copyright © 2014, SiteTuners – All Rights Reserved. #OptiCon2014 @tim_ashCopyright © 2013, SiteTuners - All Rights Reserved. @tim_ash
The Conversion Maturity Model

The Four Dimensions
Who - People & Structure
How – Tools & Technology
What – Measurement & Accountability
Why – Process & Culture

The Four Stages
IV – AdvancedIII - IntermediateII - BasicI - Unoptimized

Who – People & Structure

Getting a seat at the grown-up table

Unoptimized
• There are no full-time formal positions devoted to CRO
• Employees have no training of any kind in CRO
• CRO is not on the organizational chart
• Marketing focus is on traffic acquisition volumes
• Most website changes need assistance & approval from IT

Basic
• Some full-time non-management positions are devoted to CRO within certain departments
• A few additional employees have some informal training in CRO
• Marketing focus is on profitable traffic acquisition
• Basic website content changes can be made without IT involvement
• Some landing pages and microsites are under control of online marketing
• Main site design, messaging, and structure are still largely under control of brand/marketing
(with support from IT)

Intermediate
• There is a formal CRO team with full-time positions and a manager within a specific
department (not strategic)
• CRO team members have periodic formal training in CRO and are given the opportunity to
get additional informal training
• CRO team periodically conducts informal training for a wider internal audience
• Marketing focus is on profitable traffic acquisition and conversion
• Website content and many structural (page-flow and functionality) changes can be made
without IT involvement
• All landing pages and microsites are under control of online marketing
• Some parts of the main website are under the control of online marketing

Advanced
• There is a formal stand-alone CRO team with full-time positions and a manager which reports
to the CMO (or higher)
• CRO team sets strategic priorities company-wide via a formal intake process
• CRO team members have regular formal training in CRO
• CRO team regularly conducts informal training for a wider internal audience
• Marketing focus is on increasing profits over the lifetime of the customer
• Almost all website content and structural changes can be made without IT involvement
• All landing pages and microsites are under control of online marketing
• Most parts of the main website are under the control of online marketing

Having the right tools to go faster

• Websites are mostly static content
• Proprietary content management systems (CMS) are difficult to maintain
• Different technology platforms exist across divisions
• Few qualitative or quantitative diagnostic tools are used anywhere to uncover conversion
issues
• When diagnostic tools are available, they are not applied consistently
Unoptimized

• Websites are mostly in commercial content management systems
• More standardized technology platforms across divisions
• No qualitative or quantitative diagnostic tools are used company-wide
• Split testing tools are used opportunistically by small teams
• Very basic segmentation and analysis is done on test results
• No easy way to update web content with test winning content
• Websites changes are frequently made without measuring their impact
• Website redesigns are led by branding and marketing (without a deep diagnostic phase
focused on visitor needs)
Basic

• All websites are in commercial content management systems
• Technology platforms are standardized across divisions
• Some qualitative and quantitative diagnostic tools are used company-wide
• Split and multivariate testing tools are used routinely by small teams
• Some split tests are segmented by traffic source or other single parameters
• Marketing automation systems and CRM systems are in place but are not integrated into the
testing
• Some longer-term prospect and client behaviors (e.g. trial completion, re-subscription rates,
client surveys and research studies, and lifetime value estimates) are provided to CRO team
upon request by other departments
Intermediate

• All websites are in commercial content management systems and integrated with CRM,
marketing automating, and traffic acquisition
• Technology platforms are standardized across divisions
• Wide variety of qualitative and quantitative diagnostic tools are used company-wide
• Split and multivariate testing tools are used routinely companywide
• Real-time content changes are made on an individual visitor basis using predictive analytics,
behavioral targeting, and lead scoring
• Winning versions of tests are automatically deployed (and back-tested on a continual basis
to ensure sustainable improvements)
• All web-facing experiences are easily reconfigurable and can be rapidly tested
Advanced

Tracking the right metrics & reacting quickly

• Reporting of key metrics involves manual work and is infrequent
• Web analytics does not cover all web properties & campaigns
• Campaign-level or more granular ROI is not tracked or measured
• Marketing budgets are fixed (regardless of outcomes or profitability)
• There is no culture of measurement within the company
• Marketing decisions are frequently overruled by executives without a quantitative basis
Unoptimized

• Reporting of key metrics is done via near-real-time dashboards
• Web analytics covers all web properties & campaigns
• Campaign-level or more granular ROI is often measured
• Marketing budgets are fixed at regular intervals (based on past ROI of similar activities)
• There is a culture of measurement within web analytics and traffic acquisition teams
• There is little culture of measurement in the branding, creative, operating divisions, or offline
marketing teams
Basic

• Automatic alerts are triggered if key metrics are out of line
• Web analytics covers all web properties & campaigns and is combined with a strong
business intelligence team that all departments and operating divisions have access to
• Campaign-level and more granular ROI is always measured
• Marketing budgets are flexible and may be periodically reprioritized depending on the
current mix and profitability of acquisition activities
• There is a culture of measurement within web analytics and traffic acquisition teams and the
operating divisions
• There is some culture of measurement in the branding and creative departments (and
changes often require a quantitative proof)
Intermediate

• Automatic alerts and corrective actions are automatically triggered if key metrics are out of
line
• There is an understanding and a tolerance for negative test outcomes
• Web analytics team main focus is developing predictive analytics models and deploying them
in the form of website business rules and triggers to change the site experience on an
individual basis
• There are no fixed marketing budgets and spending is quickly reprioritized depending on the
current mix and profitability of acquisition activities
• There is a culture of measurement within all departments and operating divisions of the
company
Advanced

Who controls your company’s destiny?

• There are no formal processes for CRO
• Marketing is driven by branding and creative campaigns
• Financial rewards are not tied to improvements in online efficiencies
• There is no executive management awareness of CRO
• Positioning, messaging, product offerings are largely defined by brand/marketing
• Offline and broadcast content and messaging is reused without changes for the web
Unoptimized

• There are formal processes for tactical split testing
• Marketing is driven by a mix of creative campaigns and high-impact CRO activities
• Some teams or operating divisions have compensation tied partially to improvements in
online efficiencies
• There is some executive management awareness of CRO, but not much active support
(championing of projects or initiatives)
• There are turf issues between accountability-driven teams and brand/marketing
Basic

• There are formal processes for tactical split testing and implementing permanent changes
based on winning test versions
• Marketing is driven mostly by high-impact CRO activities
• All operating divisions have compensation tied to improvements in online efficiencies
• There is broad executive management awareness of CRO, and some active support for
projects or initiatives that are on a long-term roadmap created by executive management
• Web visitor behavior and the results of CRO activities are informally fed back to marketing to
revise value propositions and product offerings
Intermediate

• There are ongoing and largely automated processes for tactical split testing and
implementing permanent changes based on winning test versions
• Marketing is driven exclusively by high-impact CRO activities which are prioritized via a
structured submission and evaluation process
• All operating divisions have compensation tied to improvements in online efficiencies
• There is universal executive management awareness of CRO, and active support for all
projects initiated by the CRO group
• There is solid cooperation among all departments
• Web visitor behavior and the results of CRO activities are actively and systematically fed back
to marketing to create new value propositions and product offerings
Advanced

Final Thoughts

Not all dimensions will be at the same stage

The Keys to Success
• Dedication – Some people in your organization must
have CRO as their only job, and have higher-level
support
• Honesty – Problems and shortcomings should be
addressed directly & openly
• Focus – Well-defined business goals should be set,
executed, tracked, and incentivized
• Flexibility – Everything should be quickly changed when
necessary: business models, branding, allocated
resources, and tools

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Contact Info and Q&A
tim@sitetuners.com
(619) 990-9062 mobile
(619) 223-8020 work PST
twitter @tim_ash
www.linkedin.com/in/timash
facebook.com/tim.ash1
skype tim_ash1

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