Introduction

There comes a time when constantly looking to your competitors for inspiration reaches a ceiling and the need for unique and independent innovation arises.

Let’s see how CRO can give you the competitive edge.

If your competitors are doing research and testing, they’re already one step ahead of you.

There’s no denying the fact that most companies base their initial growth off how similar players in the space do things (unless they are literally reinventing the wheel). This may work for a while, but eventually these companies are either swallowed up by these competitors, or they rise up and take them on.

One big differentiator with the companies that take on the challenge and who could eventually even outperform their original competitors, is that these companies are not trying to win the rat race. These companies are methodical and patient. They have understood that what might appear to be time-consuming and pricey in the beginning, actually sets them miles ahead of everyone else down the line.

These companies see the value in laying the foundations early on in order to set themselves up for success later on. This means instilling a culture of research and experimentation from the get go.

Copying your competitors when they don’t know what they’re doing is bad practice.

Imagine that from day one, you had been gathering data. As your site traffic increased, you gradually began making use of more tools to help you understand what was going on. You set up Google Analytics, ensured you had accurate tracking, installed a behavior tracking tool (Hotjar, Microsoft Clarity etc.), conducted surveys and usability studies (live interviews with real customers), did form analyses, and…..you TESTED.

Sure, you would undoubtedly go through the same struggles that cause majority of start-ups to fail, but you will also undoubtedly have the insights and data that will ultimately allow you to emerge as that 1% of start-ups who DO succeed.

Ruler Analytics compiled data from over 150 million website visits to determine that today‘s overall average conversion rate now stands at 3.2% across industries.

This figure encompasses any desired goal – from email signups to online purchases and more.

Now, imagine the opposite.

You run your business solely by imitating what your competitors were doing, without any knowledge whether or not they even know what they are doing. Without research, copying them is going to do more damage than good.

We’re not talking about general best practices here. We’re talking about unique and specific features/strategies etc. that you see someone doing and then go and implement yourself, without any knowledge of why they did it.

Doing this is simply foolish and will not get you ahead, however, if it’s done properly and selectively, it can be hugely effective.

When looking at competitors makes sense.

At Hype, when we start working with a new CRO client, part of our research phase involves a deep competitor analysis.

We do this while keeping one thing very much in mind - CONTEXT.

For example, we did a competitor analysis for one of our clients in the luxury fashion space (especially denim). We took a look at two of their biggest competitors and came to an interesting realization:

The first brand really focused on functionality. Being able to wear their jeans in any scenario, while maintaining comfort.

The second brand focused on style. It was all about expression and being part of this almost unofficial exclusive community.

If we would’ve just blindly taken inspiration from both without any consideration of context, we’d be left without any brand identity and no idea where we lie in the market.

Make use of data and carefully analyze which models and concepts will be valuable to your business and are worth adopting from your competitors.

On aggregate, Unbounce customers realized over 12.4% average conversion rate across their landing pages last year – nearly double general website rates!

Takeaway: Commit to shifting budget towards creating targeted, optimized Landing Pages for promotions, campaigns and traffic sources delivering underwhelming conversion currently.

Source: Unbounce 2023 Landing Page Benchmark Report

Conclusion

To truly stand out, businesses need to stop playing catch-up and start leading with insight. CRO isn’t just about optimization—it’s about carving your own path, guided by data, creativity, and a deep understanding of your users.