Conversion Rate
Conversion rate is the share of visitors who took an action among those to whom the action was offered. The Academy glossary illustrates it with a form: visitors who submitted it, out of those who saw it. It is a common indicator for comparing the effectiveness of pages, campaigns or variants.
Definition and how it works
A rate only makes sense if its denominator is clear. Dividing form submissions by all site visitors, or only by those who saw the form page, gives two very different figures that are both correct. Before comparing two rates, check that they cover the same population, the same period and the same unit (visitors or sessions).
In Jahia jExperience, a goal rests on a start event, which sets who is counted, and a target event, which marks success. The base calculation of its rate compares the sessions that completed both events with those that entered through the start event. The documentation gives a specific calculation for some goal types. For a page visit goal, the calculation covers all site visits. A download goal counts the visits during which the file was downloaded at least once. In an A/B test, each variant’s rate comes with the lift, the percentage difference from the control variant.
Academy documentation: creating and viewing goals in jExperience
Related terms: Conversion · A/B Test · Goal · Event (jExperience) · Audience
Resources that cover this term
Conversion rate vs number of conversions: the differences
Conversion rate is read alongside other indicators that express different things. A rising rate can hide a falling volume.
| Indicator | How it differs |
|---|---|
| Number of conversions | The number of conversions is an absolute volume. The rate relates it to a population: a stable rate over an audience that doubles means twice as many conversions. |
| Conversion | A conversion is the action itself, counted one by one. The rate is a proportion that depends on its denominator. |
| Lift (A/B test) | Lift measures the percentage difference between a variant’s rate and the control variant’s rate. It compares two rates rather than expressing one. |
Conversion rate in practice
Two reports show very different conversion rates for the same contact form. Both are right. The first divides submissions by all site visits, the second by visits to the form page only. The first measures how well the site leads people to the form. The second measures how well the page convinces them.
Before any comparison, one question is enough. What is being divided by what?
Frequently asked questions
Why do two tools report different conversion rates for the same page?
Two tools do not necessarily divide the same things. One counts visitors, the other sessions; one relates conversions to all visits, the other to visits of the page concerned. Comparing two tools only makes sense once the numerator, the denominator and the period have been aligned.
How does the jExperience download goal measure results?
The download goal counts the visits during which a file was downloaded at least once. A rate would require knowing how many visitors were offered the file, and one file can be offered in several ways. A form or funnel goal fits better when a rate is wanted.
Is a high conversion rate always good news?
Not always. A rate can rise because the denominator falls (fewer visitors, but better targeted). It can also measure an action too easy to signal real intent. It should be read with the volume of conversions, the quality of the contacts obtained and the period observed. A rate on its own, without its denominator, supports few conclusions.