This is a great article from User Experience Engineering. Basically, it says that when a large online retailer removed the requirement to create an account upon purchase, their sales (conversion rate) skyrocketed! They changed the store so creating an account was no longer a requirement, but an option, with the option to continue to purchase without creating an account.
Of course, everything in this article is completely true and we’ve been practicing this for a long time. Below is a screen shot from a current client that’s been in place for about 10 years that does the same thing.
We believe that, very simply, the shortest route to convert a client is always best.
If it takes a user too many clicks to make a purchase, they won’t.
If it takes a user too long to find what they want, they’ll leave
If it takes a user too long to find you, they never will.
Here are 3 key points to remember when building a site.
1. Make your site easy to find.
2. Make your product or service easy to get to.
3. Make your conversion process as easy as possible.
Acquisition is half the problem, Conversion is the other half. Make it easy.
BTW, thanks to @rebeccaflavin for the tweet on this today.
