Optimization champion

Except when it’s time to move on

Some organizations will never adopt marketing optimization. The culture may be too entrenched in old ways. I cringe when I see companies start on the path of testing and then turn around and redesign their website wholesale without considering the progress and learning they’ve already made.

Never give up

As Winston Churchill said in a famous speech, “never, never, never, never give up.” testing and optimization are not one-time events. You’ll face opposition, confusing results, and disappointments, but they will melt away when you experience big wins.

Be a leader

You have a decision to make about what you stand for in your career. Every idea you want to sell depends on the influence you have with colleagues, friends, and clients. The foundation of that influence will be based on what I’ll call soft or hard credibility. Soft credibility is based on your personality, charisma, and personal connections, whereas hard credibility is the data, evidence, and goal alignment that you bring.

Share successes far and wide

Many of clients have used our results analysis presentations to create an internal event in the organization. The champion invites members from throughout the company to see the results of tests, guess the winners, and discuss what was learned. The presentations are a lot of fun, especially for those departments that aren’t normally involved in external communications. Make sure to invite people from all functional areas.

Tie results to revenue

When you present results, don’t just show the improvement in conversion rate or KPIs. Tie the results to revenue to show real cash impact.

Involve other departments

You’ll need the support of others to get your tests running: it, finance, marketing, branding, and more may present barriers. Save yourself surprises by involving them early.

Conduct skunkworks tests

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try an under-the-radar approach. Pick a few target pages with low political visibility to gain some quick wins. Landing pages outside the main website can be good candidates for this. Then, use the winning results from those tests as ammunition in your campaign for support to move on to more important optimization areas.

Use expert support and insights

Bring in a conversion-optimization expert to tell decision-makers how your website needs to improve. The credibility of a third party can carry more weight than internal voices alone, even if were bringing a similar message.

Create a tangible opportunity

Get support for testing by creating a tangible problem that testing solves. Gather visitor (dis)satisfaction survey results, show real quotes, and record feedback from real customers. Videos of customer frustration can be powerful motivators.

Get senior-level buy-in for testing

No matter how strong your project results are, you’ll face an uphill battle without senior management support.

What is success for your senior decision-makers? Start by finding out how they’re incentivized so you can show how optimization will help them reach their goals. If you can help them look (and get paid) like rock stars, they’ll support your projects and reward you in return.