Homepage video swapped for an image slider: +31% sign-ups
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsReplacing the homepage product video with a rotating image slider lifted sign-ups by 31%.
Device Magic, a mobile forms software company, ran this test themselves, and it was published as a VWO case study.
The team suspected the video was too technical, and the slides explained the product more briefly.
- Sign-ups: +31%. This was the main goal and the result was statistically significant.
- Homepage to sign-up page: +35%. More visitors moved toward signing up.
- The control led early in the test before the variant pulled ahead, so stopping early would have given the wrong answer.
The change
The product video was replaced by a rotating image slider.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The homepage featured a product video explaining Device Magic's mobile forms software.
Variant
The video was replaced with a series of rotating image slides presenting the offer more concisely.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- The team felt the video was too technical and might not be good enough quality, so it may have confused visitors more than it helped.
- Slides let visitors take in the main points at a glance, without pressing play or watching to the end.
- A short visual summary may suit a first visit better than a detailed product walkthrough.
Caveats: Sample size and test length were not shared. The result is about this particular video; a shorter or simpler video might perform differently.
Who ran it
Device Magic ran this test and published the results (VWO case study). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Device Magic →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we replace our homepage product video with a few short image slides, then more visitors will sign up because they can grasp the product faster.
- Primary metric
- Sign-ups per homepage visitor
- Guardrails
- Click-through from homepage to sign-up page
- Trial-to-paid or activation rate
- Time on page
- Who should test it
- SaaS companies with a long or technical homepage video that few visitors finish. It is less likely to help if your video is short, well made and widely watched, or if your product is hard to show in still images.
Questions
Does a homepage video increase conversions?
Not always. A clear, short video can help, but a long or technical one can slow visitors down.
Here, slides beat the video by 31% in sign-ups.
Are image sliders bad for conversion?
Sliders often get criticised, but this test shows they can beat a weak alternative.
Test against what you have now rather than relying on general rules.
Why did the results flip during the test?
Early results are noisy. The control led at first, then the variant won once enough data came in, which is why tests should run to a planned sample size.