Product browsing is a good example of an exploration path. This type of path is characterized by the repeated viewing of one or two pages, either one after another or alternately (in the case of product selection: list page and product pages).
Deadlock on List page (critical path)
The highlighted journey shows "peaks" made up of successive views of the list page and exits. This type of visualization indicates that your visitors get held up on a page and leave the site.
How to interpret it? The deadlock-on-page-list path reveals that your visitors reload the list page several times in a row without reaching other pages, perhaps as a result of the use of filters, the page layout, or cross-universe browsing.
Why is this problematic? In the short to medium term, visitors who get held up on the list page will not reach the product page, which has a major impact on their likelihood of converting.
In the long term, this behavior will result in high conversion and performance losses. This because reaching the product page is the last, crucial step before accessing the checkout. Also, this situation creates frustration (your visitors seek without finding), which lowers the likelihood that they will return to browse your site.
| Questions to ask |
How to answer
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Understand why visitors get held up on the list page: Are the displayed results relevant? Do visitors interact with the displayed results?
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Compare the behavior of visitors who reached the product page from the list page with those who don't. Identify how they access this content, and to what extent the list pages satisfy this goal. |
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Understand which elements on the page are showstoppers: Are the filter features working properly? Are the suggested filters relevant? (Too restrictive, not restrictive enough, etc.) Which paths lead most often to the exit? (Use of filters, page layout, or cross-universe browsing) |
You can then refine the list page (by creating a new mapping) and/or analyze the different behaviors (use of filters, page layout, or cross-universe browsing) in the Zoning analysis module, to identify the most problematic behaviors. |
Defined Exploration (Ideal path)
The highlighted journey is made up of a short sequence of list pages leading to the viewing of a product page. This type of visualization shows that your visitors are determined.
How to interpret it? The defined exploration path reveals that your visitors know the product they are looking for. The low page reloading rate indicates a knowledge of the product and quick use of filters. Your visitors are here for a single product and they know which one.
Why is this ideal? In the short to medium term, your visitors who are mature internet users will find the products they are looking for quickly.
In the long term, your returning visitors know the features of your site well and can quickly achieve their goals.
| Questions to ask |
How to answer
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Discover the actions that favor access to checkout for mature customers: Does one profile or another encounter more difficulties before buying? Is account creation an obstacle on my site? Is guest access offered and if so, is it effective? |
Compare the behavior of your buyers according to profile: new vs returning visitors. |
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Understand which elements on the page are key: Which elements do your mature visitors use to access the checkout (add to cart, access to the checkout funnel)? How are the add-to-cart CTAs used? Does the highlighting of reassurance elements favor entry into the checkout funnel? |
Analysis in the Page comparator module will enable you to compare the performance and use of your product page across the different segments.
You can then use the Zoning analysis module to visualize the use made of different elements promoting access to checkout. |
Window-shopping exploration (Favorable path)
The highlighted journey presents a sequence of pages alternating between list and product pages. This type of visualization shows that your visitors are window shoppers.
How to interpret it? The window-shopping path reveals that your visitors are consuming your content and they will be comparing several products.
Why is this ideal? In the short to medium term, despite almost no commitment to the cart step, your visitors show an interest in your content and a desire to explore and compare your products.
In the long term, the more your visitors see the list page and product pages, the more likely they are to convert.
| Questions to ask |
How to answer
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Check that it is a positive behavior: Is this behavior due to a navigation problem (use of the browser's back button rather than the site's navigation tools)? Why is product cross-selling not used? Lack of coherence between suggestions? |
Use the Goals module to create an add-to-cart behavior (click on the CTA). Identify how the population achieves this goal, and evaluate whether visitors need these list pages to take advantage of all choices available, or if the cross-selling tools lack visibility. By analyzing these behaviors in the Zoning analysis module, you can see if you need to highlight direct navigation between product pages or not. |
Succession of Product browsing pages
The highlighted journeys reveal an identical succession of pages, which contain key product browsing pages (List Page and Product Page). They are barely, or not at all, followed by exits. This type of visualization shows that your visitors view the same page (same type of page) successively.
How to interpret it? The succession of pages reveals that your visitors use the navigation elements enabling them to navigate between the different URLs included in a single page of the mapping:
- In case of a list page, your visitors use the filters, the page layout or navigate between the different list pages using the menu for example.
- In case of a product page, your visitors use cross-selling or sometimes edit their purchase (choice of color, size, quantity, model, etc.) before adding it to the cart.
In what cases is this behavior ideal or problematic? A succession of pages is positive if it leads to the next step, as with exploration paths (viewing of a product page after list pages and add-to-cart after viewing product pages).
A stumbling block exists if the visitor leaves the site after having seen all these pages. You then need to look for what might cause visitors to leave, as with the deadlock-on-list-page path.
| Questions to ask |
How to answer
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Identify if this succession of pages has positive or negative effects on the navigation goal: What proportion of visitors will ultimately achieve the goal? What are the possible ways in which each of these pages can be combined (remember to analyze any page view tracking data)? Why?
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Use the Goals module to create a reach-product-page or add-to-cart behavior (click on the CTA). This will let you:
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