To get right to the point: On 30 September 2023, the curtain falls on Google Optimize. In this article, I don't want to focus on one specific tool, such as Google Optimize or Optimizely, but rather on the various advantages of CRO tools (conversion rate optimisation) and what you can actually do with them. And more importantly, what it can give you!

As a website owner or marketer, you logically want to get the most out of your online presence. If you use a CRO tool, there are several things you can do to optimise and improve your website. With a CRO tool, you can, among other things:

1. A/B testing: With a CRO tool, you can run A/B tests to test and compare different versions of a page to see which performs better. This can help you choose the best version of a page to improve your conversions.
2. Viewing heatmaps: By viewing heatmaps in a CRO tool, you can see where visitors click and scroll on your website. This can help you understand what visitors are looking for and which elements of your pages attract the most attention.
3. Collect user feedback: With a CRO tool, you can create surveys and feedback forms and place them on your website to collect feedback from users. This can help you understand what users think of your website and what improvements they would like to see.
4. Analyse statistics: A CRO tool allows you to analyse statistics about user behaviour on your website. This can help you understand how visitors use your website and which pages or elements of your website may need improvement.

So a CRO tool can help you improve the user experience on your website through A/B testing, heatmaps, user feedback and analysing statistics. But the most important thing is and remains increasing the conversion rate. After all, that's where you make your money.

Test every change and embrace the failure

Important with conversion optimisation is; don't be afraid to experiment! Statistically, more tests will fail than succeed. However, the benefits of a successful test can make this time (and money) investment worth it.

Such a trajectory can have many benefits. After all, a higher conversion rate means more purchases, requests or other important actions. A simple example:

You have a conversion rate of 1% with 1,000 visitors. Each conversion earns 10 euros. So with 10,000 visitors, you have 100 conversions á 10 euros each; you have earned 1,000 euros.

If you manage to double your percentage to 2%, you will have 200 conversions per 1,000 visitors. With the same number of visitors, you will then have earned 2000 euros. So for this, you only improved your website. You don't spend another penny on ads.

While Google Optimize is a tool that can (or rather could) definitely be of some use to you, there are some suitable alternatives worth considering. Some of the best alternatives to Google Optimize are discussed below:

1. VWO (Visual Website Optimiser); VWO is a comprehensive A/B testing tool that offers extensive capabilities to optimise your website. It allows you to run different types of tests, including A/B testing, multivariate testing, heatmaps and more. It also offers the ability to personalise visitors based on different criteria, such as location, device, etc. VWO offers a user-friendly interface that allows you to create tests without needing much technical knowledge.
2. Optimizely; Optimizely is a powerful A/B testing platform that caters to the needs of businesses of all sizes. It offers an intuitive interface that lets you quickly create tests and view the results. It also offers the ability to create personalisation options so you can deliver the right experience to the right visitors. Optimizely integrates seamlessly with other tools such as Google Analytics and Segment.
3. Crazy Egg; Crazy Egg is another popular A/B testing tool that allows you to run different types of tests, including A/B testing and heatmaps. It also offers the ability to analyse visitor behaviour and create visitor profiles to personalise the website experience. Crazy Egg is easy to use and offers a visual interface that allows you to create tests without technical knowledge.
4. AB Tasty; AB Tasty is an A/B testing platform that focuses on the needs of marketing teams. It offers different types of testing, including A/B testing, multivariate testing and personalisation testing. AB Tasty also offers the ability to analyse visitor behaviour and create different segmentation options. The platform is user-friendly and offers an intuitive interface that allows you to quickly create tests and view the results.

In short, there are plenty of tools available to get more insight as well as to run tests. Especially since one of the better, free, tools is retiring later in the year, it is good to see which ones meet your needs. If we may give a tip then, another free tool (Microsoft Clarity) can at least help you gather new insights 😉

Whichever tool you are going to use, the benefits are running experiments are huge. Admittedly, it can be quite time-consuming. The fruits you can reap from it, on the other hand... you could easily double your conversion rate.