Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)
The practice of systematically increasing the share of visitors who complete a desired action, using research and experiments rather than opinion.
Growth & MetricsCRO is a loop: measure the current conversion funnel, find where and why users leave, change one thing, measure again. The research half is what separates it from redesign — session recordings, usability testing and support tickets tell you which of the twenty possible problems is the real one, so the experiment tests a hypothesis instead of a hunch.
The uncomfortable part of CRO is that most wins are unglamorous: clearer pricing, fewer fields, a working mobile layout, load time. Teams hoping for a visual redesign to lift conversion usually find that the redesign moved the number because it fixed one of those, and they could have fixed it in a week.
In practice
A SaaS marketing site converted at 1.8%. Recordings showed mobile users pinch-zooming the pricing table. Before: pricing rendered as a wide table with horizontal scroll. After stacking plans into cards below 768px, mobile conversion went from 0.7% to 2.4%. The catch — the desktop table still tested better on desktop, so both layouts had to be maintained.
Learn more
You may ask
Frequently Asked Questions
Is CRO just A/B testing?
Testing is one step of it. Without research you get a queue of low-value tests; without measurement you get a redesign. CRO is the loop, and on low-traffic sites most of the value comes from the research half because tests cannot reach significance.
How long does CRO take to show results?
The first structural fixes — mobile layout, form length, page speed, clarity of the offer — usually show within a few weeks. Incremental testing beyond that is a continuous programme measured in quarters, not a project with an end date.
Related terms
All terms- Conversion FunnelThe ordered set of steps a user passes through toward a goal, measured so you can see where people drop out.
- A/B TestingA controlled experiment that shows two versions of the same screen to comparable groups of users to find out which one performs better.
- Usability TestingWatching real users attempt real tasks in a product or prototype to find where they struggle, without steering them.
- UX AuditA structured review of an existing product against usability, accessibility and business criteria, producing a prioritised list of problems and fixes.
Defined by Mara Last reviewed .
Let's talk about your product.
Happy to look at what you're building and say where design would move the needle.
Contact Us