No. 95: Hey all,
Welcome to this week’s Commerce Lab newsletter!
Each Wednesday, you get actionable insights to boost conversions and site revenue based on our experiments on 8-and 9-figure brands.
Today’s edition is all about copy – something we’re big fans of testing.
We prove every day that even minor copy modifications, when rooted in an understanding of user behavior, can yield BIG results.
Copy is often overlooked in optimization. Many CROs, UX designers, and marketers focus more on eye-catching visuals than on effective copy.
Yet, the impact of words is powerful.
Testing messaging reveals deep insights into how customers perceive words and the meanings they attach to them.
We'll share 4 copy tests that succeeded for our brands, and one actionable insight from each.
In this 1-min read, you’ll learn:
- Win of the week: 4 ways to stand out with copy that converts.
- What else we’re reading: The answer to your declining profits, 3 questions to ask before launching a cross-sell offer, and why scanning content before clicks can improve sales.
- News: Balancing brand and demand – why consumers are holding their dollar's closer for a while.
Let’s dive in.
– Allen
👉 Did someone forward you this newsletter? Head over here to subscribe and read past issues.
WIN OF THE WEEK
Stand out with strong copy that converts with these 4 tips.
#1 - Be simple and specific.
Clarity is critical to navigation. Use the language most customers will understand.
If you’re vague or too clever with your copy and it inspires a “what?” or “umm, I’m not sure” — you’re in trouble.
One of our children's apparel brands had a drop-down link on their header menu that read, ‘Shoppe by Karen’ to show the founder’s favorite products.
We changed the language for this category header to: ‘Founder’s Faves', and it led to an 8.1% lift in revenue per session.
Old: ‘SHOPPE BY KAREN’
New: ‘FOUNDER’S FAVES’
The visitor doesn’t know who Karen is, so why would they care?
#2- Sell a transformation, not features.
All customers will arrive at your site with a specific problem, and wonder: “What’s in it for me?”
When trying to persuade someone, it’s not enough to just say something positive about your brand. Consider emotions.
For example, take one of our luxury jewelry brands. Their homepage previously focused on features, not the benefit to the customer.
We changed it to a phrase packed with emotion that spoke directly to the customer (notice the “you” language) for a 3.8% bump in conversions.
Old: "Each piece is crafted from quality materials in-house and packaged by talented women."
New: "Tell your story: Every woman has a uniquely beautiful story to tell and each piece embodies what’s meaningful to you.”
Especially if the product is hedonic in nature (bought for enjoyment) emotions inspire purchases.
Show them directly how your products will improve their life and why they can trust you. Do this early for best results.
#3 - Anticipate customer confusion and solve it in your titles.
Put yourself in a new site visitor’s shoes:
Are your collection titles too general?
We added specificity around a product category to help visitors understand who the product is for (they sell products to two different audiences: kids and mothers).
Adding two words to the collection title more than doubled the traffic to the collection and increased sales by 16.7% from the homepage.
Old: ‘Everyday Dresses’
New: ‘Everyday Dresses for Mom’
Ultra-specific copy does the leg work for you.
#4 - Different audiences react to different phrasing.
Never underestimate the power of call-to-action copy changes.
It tells you a lot about your audience.
We switched up one CTA from the standard ‘Add to Cart’ to ‘Quick Add’. The second won, boosting the ATC rate by 24.6% and conversions by 9%.
Old: ‘ADD TO CART’
New: ‘QUICK ADD’
Most brands don’t test CTA button copy, let alone experiment with slight language shifts.
Some phrases just work better for one audience vs. another. Therein lies the importance of testing.
For repeat buyers in a time pinch who are done browsing? ‘Quick Add’ may give the illusion of a faster purchase, incentivizing them to buy.
But remember: direct and clear copy always wins. It’s not worth getting fancy if just one person is confused.
Steps to Try Today
Today’s takeaways to turn site readers into buyers:
- Be simple & specific.
- Sell a transformation, not features.
- Solve for customer confusion in your titles.
- Different audiences react to different phrasing.
The smallest copy changes can make the biggest splash.
Want to avoid copy as a barrier to conversions?
Save this letter, screenshot to use in your future tests, and don’t forget to TEST!
📣 WHAT ELSE WE'RE READING
The answer to your declining profits, flat revenue, and low ROAS.
3 questions to ask before launching a cross-sell offer.
Making people scan more content before you let them click can improve sales.
Why consumers are holding their dollars close for a while.
👀 LAST WEEK'S LETTER
Is luxury branding hurting your conversions? Do this.
💡 TWEET OF THE WEEK
👊 STOUT SUCCESS
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“Very helpful. Allen was detail-oriented in the audit that he provided for us - showcasing areas of opportunity on our website specifically for mobile, checkout, etc. Really appreciate the time that Blue Stout took to walk us through the audit a few times with multiple members of our team. It was a very thorough and data-driven audit that provided us with good insight and valuable info.”
Melanie Bedwell, OliPop
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That's all for today!
If you enjoyed this, please consider forwarding it to a friend, founder, or fellow marketer.
And if you have any comments/questions, I'd love to hear them.
Until next time.
— Allen
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