Conversion Optimizer — CRO, Experimentation & Growth Engineering

Protocols

cat skills/_shared/protocols/ux-protocol.md 2>/dev/null || true

cat skills/_shared/protocols/input-validation.md 2>/dev/null || true

cat skills/_shared/protocols/tool-efficiency.md 2>/dev/null || true

cat .production-grade.yaml 2>/dev/null || echo "No config — using defaults"

Engagement Mode

cat .forgewright/settings.md 2>/dev/null || echo "No settings — using Standard"

Identity

Context & Position in Pipeline

Input Classification

frontend/

Config Paths

.production-grade.yaml

• paths.marketing

  — default:

  marketing/

• cro.primary_goal

  — default:

  signup-to-activation

• cro.traffic_volume

  — default:

  medium

  (low/medium/high — affects experiment design)

Output Structure

marketing/cro/
├── audit/
│   ├── funnel-audit.md              # Full funnel analysis with friction map
│   ├── page-audits/
│   │   ├── homepage.audit.md        # Homepage CRO analysis
│   │   ├── signup.audit.md          # Signup flow analysis
│   │   ├── onboarding.audit.md      # Onboarding CRO analysis
│   │   ├── pricing.audit.md         # Pricing page analysis
│   │   └── checkout.audit.md        # Checkout/upgrade flow analysis
│   └── heuristic-scorecard.md       # Scored evaluation (clarity, friction, motivation)
├── experiments/
│   ├── experiment-backlog.md        # Prioritized experiment queue (ICE scored)
│   ├── active/
│   │   └── <experiment-id>.md       # Individual experiment design doc
│   └── results/
│       └── <experiment-id>.results.md  # Experiment outcomes and learnings
├── implementations/
│   ├── signup-flow/
│   │   └── optimized-flow.md        # Recommended signup flow changes
│   ├── onboarding/
│   │   └── activation-checklist.md  # First-user experience optimization
│   ├── forms/
│   │   └── form-optimization.md     # Form field reduction, validation UX
│   ├── popups/
│   │   └── popup-strategy.md        # Exit intent, scroll-triggered, time-delayed
│   └── paywall/
│       └── upgrade-flow.md          # Upgrade moment optimization
├── growth-loops/
│   ├── referral-program.md          # Viral loop design
│   ├── network-effects.md           # Network effect opportunities
│   └── retention-strategies.md      # Churn prevention & re-engagement
└── churn/
    ├── cancel-flow.md               # Cancel flow with save offers
    ├── dunning-strategy.md          # Failed payment recovery
    └── win-back-sequence.md         # Churn re-engagement campaign

.forgewright/conversion-optimizer/
├── cro-plan.md                      # Master CRO strategy
├── experiment-log.md                # Running experiment tracker
└── findings.md                      # CRO audit findings & recommendations

Phases

Phase 1 — Funnel Audit

1. Funnel Mapping:
   • Map the complete user journey: Discovery → Landing → Signup → Onboarding → Activation → Retention → Upgrade → Advocacy
   • Identify every conversion point (micro-conversions + macro-conversions)
   • Mark drop-off points between stages
   • Calculate or estimate conversion rates per stage
2. Page-Level CRO Audit:
   For each critical page (homepage, signup, onboarding, pricing, checkout), evaluate:

   Factor	Score (1-10)	Criteria
   Clarity	—	Is the value proposition immediately clear? Can a visitor understand what this is in 5 seconds?
   Relevance	—	Does the page match the visitor's intent and source?
   Motivation	—	Are the benefits compelling? Is social proof present?
   Friction	—	How many steps/fields/decisions are required? Any unnecessary barriers?
   Urgency	—	Is there a reason to act NOW vs. later?
   Trust	—	Are trust signals present? (testimonials, logos, security badges, guarantees)

3. Heuristic Analysis:
   • Above-the-fold test: Can a new visitor understand (1) what this is, (2) who it's for, (3) what to do next — without scrolling?
   • Button audit: Is every CTA specific? (❌ "Submit" → ✅ "Start Free Trial")
   • Form audit: Minimum fields? Progressive disclosure? Inline validation? Error recovery?
   • Mobile audit: Touch targets 48px+? No horizontal scroll? Thumb-zone CTA placement?
   • Speed audit: Page load < 3s? LCP < 2.5s? CLS < 0.1?
4. Prioritized Opportunity Map:
   • Rank all optimization opportunities by ICE score:
     • Impact (1-10): How much will conversion improve?
     • Confidence (1-10): How sure are we this will work?
     • Ease (1-10): How easy is it to implement?
   • Top 5 opportunities become Phase 2 focus

marketing/cro/audit/

Phase 2 — CRO Implementation

1. Signup Flow Optimization:
   • Reduce form fields to absolute minimum (name + email, or email-only)
   • Add social login options (Google, GitHub, Apple)
   • Progressive profiling: collect additional info AFTER signup, not during
   • Show benefit reinforcement near form ("Join 10,000+ teams")
   • Inline validation with green checkmarks (positive reinforcement)
   • Password strength indicator (if password required)
2. Onboarding / Activation:
   • Define the "Aha moment" — the first action that predicts retention
   • Create activation checklist: guide users to value in first session
   • Remove all non-essential steps from first-run experience
   • Empty states → contextual prompts with example data
   • Progress indicators for multi-step onboarding
   • Celebrate completion (confetti, success message, next step)
3. Form Optimization:
   • Multi-step forms > long single-step forms (perceived effort reduction)
   • Auto-fill and smart defaults where possible
   • Remove optional fields or mark clearly
   • Contextual help text (tooltips, not separate help pages)
   • Error messages: specific, beside the field, suggest fix
4. Popup/Modal Strategy:
   • Exit-intent: trigger on cursor movement toward browser chrome
   • Scroll-based: show after 60-70% page scroll (indicates interest)
   • Time-delayed: 30-60 seconds on page (indicates engagement)
   • Content: offer value (guide, discount, trial extension) — never interrupt without value
   • Frequency cap: max 1 popup per session, don't show to signed-in users
5. Pricing Page Optimization:
   • Highlight recommended tier with visual emphasis
   • Anchoring: show highest price first (makes mid-tier feel affordable)
   • Feature comparison table with clear ✓/✗
   • FAQ section addressing objections (money-back guarantee, can I cancel?)
   • Social proof near CTA ("Trusted by [number] companies")
6. Paywall/Upgrade Optimization:
   • Trigger upgrade prompts at "natural upgrade moments" (hit a limit, want a premium feature)
   • Show usage-based nudges ("You've used 80% of your free plan")
   • Offer trial of premium features before asking for payment
   • Reduce upgrade friction: pre-fill billing, one-click upgrade

marketing/cro/implementations/

Phase 3 — Experimentation

1. Experiment Design: For each experiment, document:
   markdown

   ## Experiment: [EXP-001] [Name]
   
   **Hypothesis:** If we [change], then [metric] will [improve/decrease] 
   because [reason based on audit finding].
   
   **Primary metric:** [e.g., signup completion rate]
   **Secondary metrics:** [e.g., activation rate, time to signup]
   **Guard-rail metrics:** [e.g., support tickets, error rate — must NOT degrade]
   
   **Control:** [Current experience description]
   **Variant:** [Changed experience description]
   
   **Traffic allocation:** [50/50 or 80/20 for risky changes]
   **Minimum sample size:** [Calculator: baseline rate, MDE, significance]
   **Expected duration:** [X days at current traffic]
   
   **Success criteria:** [Primary metric improves by ≥X% at p < 0.05]
   **Decision framework:**
   - Win (primary ≥ MDE, guard-rails hold) → Ship variant
   - Inconclusive (< MDE, guard-rails hold) → Extend or iterate
   - Loss (primary degrades OR guard-rails fail) → Revert immediately

2. Experiment Prioritization:
   • ICE score all experiments
   • Run max 1-2 experiments per page simultaneously
   • Sequential testing for pages with < 1000 weekly visitors
   • Minimum 2-week runtime (capture weekly patterns)
3. Statistical Rigor:
   • Minimum detectable effect (MDE): 5-10% relative improvement
   • Significance level: p < 0.05 (95% confidence)
   • Power: 80% minimum
   • Don't peek at results before minimum sample reached
   • Account for multiple testing if running multiple variants

marketing/cro/experiments/

Phase 4 — Growth Loops & Retention

1. Growth Loops:
   • Referral program: Design referral incentive (two-sided rewards: referrer + new user)
   • Viral loop: In-product sharing (invite team, share project, embed badge)
   • Content loop: User-generated content that drives organic traffic
   • Network effects: Identify if product gains value with more users (marketplace, collaboration)
   • Product-led growth: Free tier that demonstrates value and naturally upgrades
2. Churn Prevention:
   • Cancel flow optimization:
     • Ask reason for cancellation (select from common reasons)
     • Offer targeted save offers based on reason:
       • "Too expensive" → discount or downgrade option
       • "Missing feature" → show roadmap or workaround
       • "Not using enough" → offer pause instead of cancel
       • "Found alternative" → offer competitive comparison
     • Show usage stats ("You've created 47 projects this month")
     • Allow pause (1-3 months) instead of full cancellation
   • Dunning management (failed payments):
     • Smart retry: attempt charge at different times/intervals
     • Email sequence: friendly notification → reminder → urgency → last chance
     • In-app banner for past-due accounts
     • Grace period before feature restriction (7-14 days)
   • Win-back campaign:
     • 30-day post-churn: "We miss you" + product update highlights
     • 60-day: incentive offer (discount, extended trial)
     • 90-day: final reach with major product update
3. Re-engagement:
   • Monitor activation metrics — detect disengaged users early
   • Trigger-based emails: "You haven't logged in this week — here's what's new"
   • Feature discovery prompts for underused capabilities
   • Weekly/monthly digest emails with usage stats and tips

marketing/cro/growth-loops/

marketing/cro/churn/

Common Mistakes

Handoff Protocol

Execution Checklist

• Complete funnel audit with friction map for all critical paths
• Heuristic scorecard completed for homepage, signup, onboarding, pricing
• ICE-scored opportunity backlog with top 10 optimization targets
• Signup flow analyzed with specific reduction recommendations
• Onboarding "Aha moment" defined with activation checklist
• Form optimization spec for all lead capture forms
• Popup/modal strategy with frequency caps and trigger rules
• Pricing page optimization with anchoring and social proof recommendations
• At least 3 A/B experiment designs with hypothesis, metrics, and success criteria
• Growth loop strategy (referral, viral, content, or network effects)
• Cancel flow with save offers mapped to cancellation reasons
• Dunning strategy for failed payment recovery
• Win-back email sequence for churned users (30/60/90 day)
• All CRO assets written to

  marketing/cro/

  directory