How Trulia Boosted Lead Conversion
Three experiments that show unique ways to increase lead conversion by double-digits in various parts of the funnel.
Context
Trulia, a leading real estate search marketplace, provides a platform where renters and landlords connect to find and list rental properties. Trulia earns revenue whenever a user expresses interest in a property by submitting their information.
When a user lands on the Trulia website, they follow the below flow to eventually end up as an lead for a rental property to the landlord.
Note: In marketplace businesses, the terms “lead”, “inquiries”, or “contacts” are interchangeably used to describe a request sent to the supply side of the market.
Opportunity
It’s critical to recognize the challenges renters face in finding the right property in competitive markets — typically needing to contact at least ten properties before deciding on one.
The process of submitting inquiries to multiple properties can be time-consuming and tedious, leading to user drop-off and a lower number of leads generated. For Trulia, this not only impacts user satisfaction but also directly affects revenue, as this implies fewer leads sent to landlords and property managers.
Trulia had an opportunity to become a larger share of the leads the landlord received, and therefore focused on finding innovative ways to make property inquiries as seamless as possible. By making it as easy as possible for renters to reach out to multiple landlords, the platform increases user engagement, satisfaction, and ultimately, its revenue.
Experiments
Trulia undertook three key experiments to increase lead generation to landlords. While Trulia was sending millions of leads a month across the nation, it was still a small percentage of the total number of leads many received. Thus, lead quality was not yet a large concern.
Property Recommender
Trulia introduced a feature that would recommend up to four similar properties after a user submitted their information on one property. With just a single click, renters could express interest in these additional properties. This streamlined approach aimed to minimize the friction in contacting multiple properties, significantly improving the user experience.
Funnel Step: Post-Lead
KPI: Leads and Revenue
Impact:
This experiment led to a 20% increase in both leads and revenue. By making it easier for renters to inquire about multiple properties at once, Trulia saw a significant uptick in user engagement and landlord connections.
For illustration purposes
1-Click Request
Inspired by Amazon's "1-Click Purchase" model, Trulia implemented a "1-Click Request" feature, allowing users to save their Personal Identifiable Information (PII) and related details in their profile. This feature, enabled by default, allowed renters to contact landlords for more information or to schedule time for a tour with a single tap or click. By reducing the steps required to make an inquiry, Trulia hoped to increase the number of leads generated.
Funnel Step: Lead Form
KPI: Leads and Revenue
Impact:
The implementation of this feature also resulted in a 20% increase in leads and revenue. The simplicity of a single click to contact landlords reduced friction and encouraged more renters to submit inquiries, thereby driving higher engagement and revenue.
First Time, Enabling 1-Click Request
After 1-Click is active:
MadLibs Contact Form
In very competitive rental markets like NYC or San Francisco, prospective renters sometimes write handwritten notes and send it to the landlord as part of their application. Taking this inspiration, Trulia experimented with a Mad-Libs-style form that mirrored a personalized message the landlord would receive. This was tested on both Desktop and Mobile platforms.
Funnel Step: Lead Form
KPI: Leads Conversion (Leads/Visits)
Impact:
This feature improved lead conversion rates by 10% on the desktop platform. The interactive and personalized nature of the Mad-Libs form seemed to resonate with users, making their inquiries appear more genuine and increasing the likelihood of a response from landlords. However, the experiment did not perform well on mobile devices, likely due to the constrained screen space that hindered user interaction with the form.
When this experiment combined with the 1-Click Request feature, it was still beneficial as it increased lead conversion for the first request sent by a site visitor.
Growth Levers and Learnings
“Don’t Make Me Think” and Power of Defaults
The success of the Property Recommender and 1-Click Request features highlights the importance of reducing friction in user interactions. Making it as easy as possible and defaulting settings for renters to submit inquiries significantly boosts engagement and lead generation.
Personalization Matters
The MadLibs experiment, although only effective on desktop, demonstrated that renters are more likely to engage with tools that allow for personalization and humanization of communication. Renters want their inquiries to stand out and be noticed by landlords, and providing tools that facilitate this can improve conversion rates.
Platform-Specific Design
The mixed results of the MadLibs experiment underline the importance of considering platform-specific constraints when designing user interfaces. What works well on a desktop may not translate effectively to mobile devices, and a one-size-fits-all approach may not always be viable.