Unlocking Massive Gains: How a Tiny Tweak to Our Trade Request Banners Led to Phenomenal Results

If you're in any kind of business that involves customer interaction, you've probably heard this a million times: "Small changes can lead to big results." Well, let me tell you, we just lived through that cliché — and the results are nothing short of mind-blowing.

A small tweak to our trade request banners across multiple store websites led to a phenomenal increase in both leads and conversions. I'm talking about a 800% spike in requests on average and a doubling of conversions. You read that right—eight times the number of leads, and these new leads are converting twice as often as the old ones. Insane, right? Let's break down what we did and why it worked so well.

The Simple Tweak: License Plates Over VINs

Our original trade appraisal request forms were standard fare: we asked for an email and a phone number, and we required a Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) along with the same 12 questions about vehicle condition we always asked. As straightforward as that sounds, it turns out nobody likes digging up their VIN and giving away their email and phone number. They probably thought we’d spam them with calls and emails about buying a new car. Totally understandable, but it created friction.

Here’s where we flipped the script: instead of using the VIN to get vehicle details, we switched to using the license plate number. And instead of asking for both an email and phone number, we made it simple — just a cell number. We even changed our call-to-action (CTA) to "Text my offer to this number: __________." The difference was night and day.

Why License Plates?

Think about it: most people can rattle off their license plate number, or if they can’t, it’s as easy as looking out the window at their car parked in the driveway. A VIN, on the other hand? Good luck getting that right the first time. It’s usually a hassle to locate and even harder to copy down correctly. We cut out that step and made it easy for people to give us their car’s details quickly.

Cutting Out the Hassle

The shift from VIN to license plate wasn’t just about ease; it was a fundamental change in how we perceived our customers' interaction with our form. We realized that the less effort our customers had to expend, the more likely they were to engage. License plates are easier to recall and far less daunting than a long string of letters and numbers. And voilà — increased ease led to an increased willingness to share information.

Tweaking the CTA: Less is More

Here’s where we struck gold: by changing "Submit your information" to "Text my offer to this number: __________," we completely transformed the user experience. The word “text” made it sound informal and non-threatening. And who doesn’t like the idea of receiving information via text rather than a potential sales call? It reduced friction to almost zero.

The Magical Results

The transformation was immediate and astonishing. Requests shot up by more than 800% on average, and conversions doubled. It wasn’t just the volume of leads that increased; the quality did too. These new leads were more engaged, more interested, and more ready to convert than ever before.

Why Simplification Works

It’s amazing how a small change, like simplifying a form and adjusting the way we reached out to potential customers, could lead to such massive gains. This experience underscores the importance of user experience (UX) in any form of customer interaction. The easier and more intuitive you make it for customers to engage with you, the higher your chances of success.

Our old form inadvertently discouraged people from sharing their details. But by tweaking the form and making it super easy and non-threatening, we saw astonishing results. It’s a classic example of how simplification drives engagement and conversions.

Wrapping Up: Try It for Yourself

So, here’s the takeaway: don’t underestimate the power of small changes. Simplifying your processes and being mindful of how you ask for information can have a massive impact. Our tiny tweak transformed our trade request banners into lead-generating machines.

Give it a shot with your own trade form or any other customer interaction point. Simplify, reduce friction, and see what happens. The results might just blow your mind.