Conversion rate gain with web performance optimization. A case study

Abstract

In this paper, we show how e-business performance metrics gain from Web Performance Optimization (WPO). We study the application of WPO to improve the conversion and bounce rates for the credible opinions form of one of the biggest Polish opinion web portals. We evaluated and optimized two types of opinion forms, namely the company and product opinion forms. We applied modern WPO techniques suggested in the literature. The conversion of the company opinion form was the primary aim of our optimization. We observed and analyzed the effects using Google Analytics tools connected to the application and internal analytic panel. We collected the conversion and bounce rates before and after the optimization. The result for the company opinion form is auspicious, showing its high conversion increase from 6.35% to 14.30% within six months of observation nevertheless the product opinion form got the significant decrease, from 3.69% to 1.68%. We discuss and explain the possible reasons for such a situation. We used WebPageTest to test the performance of both opinion forms, before and after the optimization.