[ikea] 9 persuasive principle used by ikea to boost their conversions

Marcello PasqualucciCRO Director

Online Persuasions Insiders 2016

How does IKEA optimise conversions?

19 neuroscience ✔principles 17 mistakes ✘

to correct 9 improvementsto make

An analysis of IKEA’s conversion process

I reveal what’s working, what’s not working quite so well, and propose some changes to help increase the site’s income…

I’m looking to buy a desk lamp so I decide to turn to the Swedish giant IKEA.

As a Conversion Optimisation Consultant, I take note of both the positives and the areas for improvement on the site.

Join me on my user journey and discover some of the most relevant neuroscience principles for this site.

The context

A path in 10 steps

Homepage

1 2 3 4

Product ListCategory Subcategory

Basket

6 7

Address

8

Delivery Info

9

Login Payment

10

5

Product

Homepage

Homepage Product ListCategory Subcategory Product

Basket Address Delivery InfoLogin Payment

Homepage

I tried to read all the content on this carousel but I couldn’t; the slides change every 5 seconds and there’s no Call to Action on any of them!

Homepage

Paradox of Choice ✘

Homepage

Nice images but what are they for? I can’t be bothered to read all the content (like a lot of Internet users, I’m lazy)!

Picture Superiority Effect ✘

Homepage

Picture Superiority Effect ✔ I just clicked on “All departments” and they have icons next to all the category names, that’s a great help.

Homepage

The search bar features dynamic preview, but when I type ‘desk lamp’, no suggestions come up. Am I the only one looking for a desk lamp?!

Homepage

Illusion of Control ✘

Here are the results for my “desk lamp” search. There are only 2 products and neither are really what I’m looking for. Maybe I’ll get luckier searching via the categories…

Single Choice Aversion ✘

Homepage

‘Other results’ leads to this unpleasant page:

Category



High quality images that present the product category content clearly and in a visually effective way.

Category

Picture Superiority Effect ✔

Category

Categories are a bit messy. It would be better to make the text clearer and easier to read.

Proposalfor improvement

Subcategory



Subcategory

Hmmm… I’m in the lighting category, I’d rather see lighting suggestions and inspiration.

Commitment & Consistency ✘

Products List



There are 3 menu bars! It’s a bit too much…

Product ListParadox of Choice ✘

Products List

I’m not sure about this “Buyable online”… I am here to buy online. anyway

Product List

Products List

Processing Fluency ✘

Paradox of Choice ✔

I can sort by: - relevance - name - price - or release date Having just a few well-chosen options is very efficient.

Product List

Products List

That’s a lot of empty space. It’s nice and clean but I can’t even see any products above the fold line.

Products List


Products List


I’ve replaced the category bars with a breadcrumb trail placed on the same line as the search tools so I can see some products above the fold line.

I assume it is something positive but what does ‘A++’ mean?

Curse of Knowledge ✘ Product List

Products List

Product List

IKEA shows the more expensive products first. It’s a good way to set a high price standard in the mind of the user so that the following prices seem lower.

Anchoring Effect ✔

Products List

The presentation of the products is uniform, the layout is clean, it's easy to browse and scan over the products

Product List

Products List

Cognitive Fluency ✔

Product List

available in other colours

This lamp is available in different colours but I can’t see the variations on the category page and I don’t want to go in to a store. I would add an icon to provide this information.

Single Choice Aversion ✔

Products List


Pain of Buying ✔

Hovering over the product allows me to add it to my basket in one click. It speeds up the process and thus makes the act of buying less painful.

Product List

Products List

Product



Product

Where are the main product details like the material, the size and the type of bulb required? I actually have to scroll down and find the “Product information”.

Information Bias ✘

Product

The layout of the information is not hierarchical enough: I don’t know what to read first… It puts me off reading it at all.


Information Bias ✔

Clicking on the image allows me to zoom in closely and get great visual detail.

Product

Product

It would be great to see customer testimonials and ratings somewhere on the product page, it would reassure me of my choice. Top Customer Reviews

By Rick on 14 August 2015

The light emitted is pretty clear and pleasant and will light up the room … See more

By Summer on 21 September 2015

The light base is quite good for setting in different place with the flexible frame. However, the bulb is not durable at all … See more

Bandwagon effect ✔


Basket



The Call to Action is almost INVISIBLE (small and blue just like the menu bar and links).

Von Restorff Effect ✘

Basket

Basket

As there is only one complementary product at the moment, I would definitely suggest adding more related products.

Commitment & Consistency ✔


Login



This icon looks like a Call to Action…

Login

Von Restorff Effect ✘

Login

Make the wording clearer and the Call to Action more visible.

Processing fluency ✔


I would suggest moving the IKEA Family information and changing the design of the card itself.

Address



Processing Fluency ✔

Linear, clear form. It looks - and is - easy to fill in.

Address

[email protected]

[email protected]

I entered the wrong email and IKEA clearly tells me what’s happened:

Address

The email addresses entered do not match

Processing Fluency ✔

[email protected]

[email protected]

I’ve removed the stars and reorganised the form into 2 sections.

I’ve also replaced the link “click here” with a more simple tick box.

Address

Foot-in-the-Door Technique ✔


Delivery Information



These 2 paragraphs are effective reassurance elements; using symbols would highlight them more.

Need for Certainty ✘


[email protected]

A delivery fee has been discreetly added to my order…

Ambiguity Effect ✘


[email protected]


I’ve reorganised the delivery information section to make it clearer.

These are actual reassurance elements that I found on the site, displayed clearly using visuals and concise text.

[email protected]

Need for Certainty ✔


Payment



Payment

Ambiguity Effect ✘

[email protected]

I can see the prices without VAT by ticking this box. Not really of interest to me though as I selected “private customer” earlier…

Why do I need to be reminded of this information? It’s unnecessary and taking up space, moving the payment section further away.

Attention Ratio ✘

Payment

[email protected]

Payment

One solution would be to remove the whole order review from this page and add it to the previous page instead. Then only the payment section remains.

Response Efficacy ✔


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Marcello PasqualucciCRO Director

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[ikea] 9 persuasive principle used by ikea to boost their conversions

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