Why Best Practices Are Dangerous in CRO
While best practices provide a convenient starting point for conversion rate optimisation, their uncritical application often leads to mediocre results. Over-reliance on established patterns inhibits innovation and ignores the context-specific nature of user behaviour.
The Problem with Best Practices
"Best practices offer certainty in an uncertain world," explains Dr. Eleanor Murray, researcher at the University of Manchester. "But they also create a false sense of security, preventing teams from questioning what truly works for their specific audience."
Three Common Pitfalls
- False Universality: Assuming a tactic that worked in one context will work in all.
- Cargo Cult Optimisation: Copying what others do without understanding the reasoning.
- Innovation Paralysis: Relying on templates instead of experimenting with new approaches.
A Framework for Smarter Optimisation
Instead of following best practices blindly, teams should:
- Use best practices as hypotheses, not rules.
- Test assumptions rigorously rather than assuming what works elsewhere will work for them.
- Focus on core psychological principles rather than tactical tricks.
Beyond Best Practices
"The companies that achieve the best results don’t just follow best practices—they test, adapt, and create new ones," notes James Chen, CRO Director at Digital Forge. True optimisation comes from experimentation, not imitation.