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The Challenge

Our client, a well-known global media company, needed to improve conversion rates for one of their publications. The challenge for this particular publication was two-fold: potential customers already received a partial subscription to the publication for free, so they really needed a compelling reason to buy. Plus, the client needed to be able to cross-sell other publications within the same order flow without sacrificing conversion rates.

Sepiida’s Solution

We helped create messaging to drive the value of the paid subscription, and set up testing for multiple page flows in order to find out which approach would yield the best results. By coupling online form optimization with landing page optimization in the same web flow, we were able to create several options to test against their control form.

The Outcome

The newly optimized web flows outperformed the control in every case, resulting in a 68% increase in the order conversion rate with discounted subscription pricing and a 114% conversion rate improvement on the web flow that included full priced subscriptions.

Challenge Overview

Our client needed to revamp their then-current web purchase flows in order to increase subscription rates for one of their more prominent publications. Because the publication was available for free on a limited basis, subscribers needed to be very motivated to make a purchase. Additionally, the client wanted to continue to incorporate cross-sell opportunities along with the subscription, without causing a drop in purchases.

With two varying purchase flows – one for a discounted subscription rate and one for a full-price subscription rate – they needed to optimize for conversions on multiple levels. Because of the potential complexity of the conversion rate optimization, our client turned to us to come up with the best plan of action for increasing their subscriber base.

Sepiida’s Order Flow Conversion Rate Optimization Solution

When we took on the project, our first step was to assess the then-current web flows to look for areas of improvement. Our client had potential subscribers that came in via the web, and other potential subscribers that they nurtured through a dedicated email list. Additionally, some potential subscribers were offered a special discounted rate for their initial subscription, and had a separate purchase flow from the full-price subscribers.

Because of the need to improve the order flow conversion rates across multiple channels, we opted for multivariate testing that incorporated several areas including: the existence of a landing page versus a funnel directly to the order form, a multi-page order form versus a single-page order form, and the location of various cross-sell items. In order to reduce friction on the page, the cross-sell opportunities were framed as additional resources that could directly complement the initial order. Once we set up the testing, the traffic was then split evenly amongst the various web flows in order to determine a “winner” that would have the highest conversion rates.

Final Outcome

After only one month of testing, a clear winner emerged for the full-price order flows. The winning test flow improved order conversion rates by 114%. In the same amount of time, the test flows for the discounted subscription rate beat the control in every single instance, with the top two test flows increasing conversions by 66% and 68% respectively.

Our client was able to realize a substantial increase in conversions without giving up cross-sell opportunities for their other publications. With the latest improvements in place in both web and email channels, the client is ready for the next round of testing and refinement to continue to increase their web order flow conversion rates.