Fewer CTAs, condensed sections: +31.8% Try Free clicks, inconclusive
Test run byMarketingExperimentsResearch publisher
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsRemoving competing calls-to-action and condensing a product page's tab and pricing sections showed a 31.8% rise in clicks to the Try Free funnel, but only at 94% confidence, so we treat it as inconclusive.
MECLABS Institute ran the test for an anonymized software company with a free trial, published on MarketingExperiments. Several changes shipped together.
- Clickthrough to the Try Free funnel was 31.8% higher on the new page.
- Confidence was 94%, below the 95% bar MECLABS uses, so MECLABS classed the result as inconclusive. Treat it as flat.
- Trial starts and paid conversions further down the funnel were not reported.
- Changes were bundled, so the result can't be credited to any one of them.
The change
Competing CTAs removed; tabs and pricing condensed and relabeled
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
A product page with several competing calls-to-action and longer product tab and pricing sections.
Variant
Competing CTAs were removed, the product tab and pricing sections were shortened, and tabs were renamed to say what each section offers.
Why it likely came out this way
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- With fewer competing CTAs, the free trial became the obvious next step.
- Shorter sections may have brought the trial offer into view sooner.
- Clear tab names may have helped visitors find what they needed without scanning everything.
- The lift may still be noise, given it fell short of the confidence threshold.
Caveats: The result fell just short of 95% confidence, and the source gives only a one-line summary with no sample size or duration. The test is from 2015 and bundled several changes.
Who ran it
MarketingExperiments ran this test for an anonymized software company with a free trial and published the results (MarketingExperiments). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on MarketingExperiments →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we remove competing calls-to-action and condense the product and pricing sections, then more visitors will click Try Free because the trial becomes the clear next step.
- Primary metric
- Clickthrough to the free trial sign-up
- Guardrails
- Completed trial sign-ups
- Trial-to-paid conversion
- Clicks to demo or contact sales
- Who should test it
- SaaS companies with a free trial whose product pages push several actions at once. If many buyers need sales contact or detailed pricing, cutting those paths may cost you more than it gains.
Questions
Do fewer calls-to-action increase free trial sign-ups?
Often, because visitors face one clear choice. In this test the direction was positive, but the result did not reach the usual confidence bar, so it needs a retest.
Is 94% confidence good enough to ship a change?
Many teams require 95% before calling a winner.
At 94% the result is suggestive, but there is a higher chance the lift is noise, so a longer run or retest is safer.
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