After Conversion: Thank-you message or thank-you page?

[Klaas Koopman]

Hi Professionals!

I'm research wether it's a good idea to use a thank-you page instead of a thank-you message after people fill in a contactform or make a payment or something.

What do you all suggest and does anyone happen to have any statistics to back this up?

 

[Eric Rohrback]

Thank you page is better in my opinion. You'll be able to make it clear that the process has been completed, which will be better for users. It will also (depending on the website platform) be easier to track conversions. I think using a thank you page also gives an opportunity to share more content or additional resources you might have about the business/product which would lead the user to stay on the site longer. It could also lead to additional product sales if they get really into the brand/product.

 

[Klaas Koopman]

Thank you page is better in my opinion. You'll be able to make it clear that the process has been completed, which will be better for users. It will also (depending on the website platform) be easier to track conversions. I think using a thank you page also gives an opportunity to share more content or additional resources you might have about the business/product which would lead the user to stay on the site longer. It could also lead to additional product sales if they get really into the brand/product.

Eric, thank you very much for your reply. I'm reading alot of articles about this and can't find any statistics to back up the things we 'think' is better?

 

[djbaxter]

I don't have any data either but actually my preference is a brief pop-up message and perhaps a confirmatory email, at least for a contact form.

I get your logic, Eric, but speaking from both a user standpoint and a designer standpoint the brief message leaves the visitor on the same page and is faster than loading a new page and then hitting the browser back button if you want to continue on the same page. This is especially true if you're accessing the site via a mobile device.

For an online payment, I would say definitely a thank you confirmatory page. Like many people I know, I like to print out a copy of any online payments.

 

[Eric Rohrback]

Yeah I guess I was in the mindset of purchase path behavior. I work in enterprise eComm now, so that's kind of how I'm wired to thinking...

Personally I don't think you're going to find many stats on this, and I doubt any will be useful. Every site, scenario, and situation is different so the only way you'll know is to test. Spend less time reading other people's statistics about what worked or didn't work for them and take the theory behind the test to implement on your own site.

Adapting other people's ideas is a good thing, don't get me wrong. I just want to clarify by saying you will not have the same results as another person's website so the only way to know is to A/B test yourself. If you spend all day looking for stats then you're just procrastinating by trying to "prove" to yourself your idea is best. Test and see what works for you.

 

[Klaas Koopman]

Eric, I do always test everything myself. But with sites that don't have much traffic yet and when I come up with something new to think/test about, I like to have a starting point. Just trying to see what the community thoughts are on this...

 

[Colan Nielsen]

I would suggest a thank you page so that you can track your conversions (Goals) in Google Analytics. However, if you have some dveloper skills, I believe there is a way to track Goals without the user actually leaving the original page.

 

[Colan Nielsen]

Here's a good post from HubSpot that touches on some of the points that Eric made - Why Marketers Should Ditch Thank-You Messages for Thank-You Pages

 

[Klaas Koopman]

Thanks Colan and local search forum! Thank-you pages it is, will set them up today!

 

[hisiblim]

When working with a hired web designer on my landing pages, I always insist on focusing on a simple goal: getting the user to convert on my form. Sometimes I prefer to go with custom-made PrestaShop themes, though. In that case, one of my pre-sales questions is whether the template has a well crafted thank-you page included right out of the box. With a thank-you message, you are fighting a battle against the visitor navigating away from your site entirely. On the contrary, thank-you pages give visitors new opportunities to engage more deeply with your brand, which gives you secondary conversion opportunities as well.

 

[Steve Conrad]

Thank you page coupled with email confirmation helps track conversions while a quick pop-up message is better for usability. At the same time, with pop-ups you risk the situation when a user has a device that cannot display them properly. So I vote for a separate page.