Are you doing CRO or just AB testing?

CRO programs need attention and strategy to be successful.

As a business owner or marketer, you’re always looking for ways to improve your website and increase conversions. One approach that has gained popularity with demand gen marketers is A/B testing, which involves creating two versions of a webpage or marketing campaign and comparing their performance to determine which one is more effective. Google Optimize’s free tool makes CRO insanely accessible.

While A/B testing can be a valuable tool for making small, incremental improvements, it’s important to recognize that it’s just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to conversion rate optimization (CRO). In fact, building a culture of CRO within your organization is the only path to maximizing conversions over the long term.

Here are a few reasons why a CRO-focused company culture is better than relying on A/B testing alone:

1. A/B testing is reactive, while CRO is proactive. With A/B testing, you’re essentially trying to fix problems after they’ve already occurred. You create a hypothesis, implement a test, and see if it works. With CRO, on the other hand, you’re proactively looking for ways to optimize every aspect of your website and marketing efforts. This proactive approach can help you identify and fix issues before they become problems.
   
2. A/B testing is limited, while CRO is holistic. A/B testing can only compare two versions of a webpage or campaign, which means you’re limited to testing one change at a time. This can be time-consuming and may not give you a complete picture of what’s working and what’s not. With CRO, on the other hand, you can take a holistic approach and consider all the factors that impact conversions, including design, copy, user experience, and more.
   
3. A/B testing is short-term, while CRO is long-term. A/B tests are typically designed to run for a specific period of time and provide a quick answer to a specific question. But once the test is over, it’s easy to fall back into old habits and stop optimizing. CRO, on the other hand, is a continuous process that requires ongoing effort and attention. By making CRO a part of your company culture, you can create a sustainable, long-term approach to optimization that pays off over time.

In conclusion, A/B testing can be a useful tool for making small, incremental improvements to your website or marketing campaigns. But if you really want to maximize conversions and drive long-term growth, it’s important to adopt a culture of CRO within your organization. By proactively looking for ways to optimize every aspect of your business, you can create a sustainable, long-term approach to conversion rate optimization that pays off over time.

Invest in the people and the process and the sustained increase will follow.

*written in partnership with ChatGPT