Customer experience benchmarking: your website against your competitors, rated by 200 people from your target audience

WUA's Website Experience Deep Dive is a customer experience benchmark in which 200 people from your target audience rate your website and those of your three main competitors across seven dimensions of the digital customer experience.

Book an introduction
Illustration of a group of people, seen from behind, pointing at three cards with an orange check mark

How the competitor benchmarking works

The Deep Dive shows where you win and lose, why customers drop off, and which improvements will lift conversion most.

  1. Intake

    We agree with you which customer journey and which target audience we research.

  2. Choose three competitors

    We do that together. Three is the number one participant can rate with full attention.

  3. Your target audience rates the sites

    Every participant goes through all four websites. That makes the differences more reliable than with a separate group per site.

  4. Analysis

    The scores on seven dimensions point to the two themes with the most impact on conversion.

  5. Report and workshop

    Together with your team we set the priorities.

200 people from your target audience, four websites

  1. One participant from your target audience looks at your site and those of three competitors.
  2. She rates each part.
  3. Then the other 199 participants do the same.

Measuring customer experience on seven dimensions

For each dimension the Deep Dive weighs how far you are behind and how much it matters to your target audience. WUA works out the two themes with the most impact on conversion in an advisory report.

Seven dimensions for higher conversion

Your site compared with your competitors

  1. Scores on seven dimensions.
  2. Sorted by impact on conversion.
  3. Two themes for the advisory report.

  1. Product offerClear product information and choices

  2. NavigationFinding what you are looking for

  3. ScannabilityAn overview at a glance

  4. Technical functioningFast loading, no errors

  5. Brand perceptionImage and trust

  6. Price perceptionClear, reasonable prices

  7. AppearanceA polished, recognisable design

Where does your site trail your competitors?

Book an introduction

What the website research gives you

After the Deep Dive your whole team works from the same numbers.

  1. A benchmark against three competitors

    Scores on all seven dimensions, for you and three competitors, in an online dashboard.

  2. Improvements in order of impact

    With good examples from other industries, so you see what to tackle first and how to do better.

  3. An advisory report on two themes

    WUA works out the two themes with the most impact on conversion for you.

    Advisory report

    1. Product offer
    2. Navigation

  4. A presentation and workshop with your team

    We discuss the results and decide together what you tackle first.

    Workshop

    Illustration of a team discussing the outcomes of the research together

What three brands did with their Deep Dive

Woman working on her laptop at the table at home

Eneco

With the Deep Dive, Eneco could pinpoint exactly which parts of the customer journey needed to improve and why. That substantiated the business case for improvements.

How Eneco substantiated the business caseEneco logo

Start with a no-obligation conversation

Investment
from €16,500
Lead time
4 to 6 weeks
  1. IntroductionWe discuss your question.
  2. ProposalPrice and planning tailored to you.
  3. We do the restRecruitment, research and analysis.
Book an introduction

You'll speak with Merel Schouten, research consultant

Is a Deep Dive right for you?

  • You want to know what is holding back your conversion.
  • You are planning or evaluating a major redesign.
  • Opinions differ internally.
  • Your customers compare online before they choose, as in energy, mortgages, telecom and insurance.
The Website Experience Deep Dive next to other research methods
StudyMethodNumber of peopleCompetitorsOutcome
Website Experience Deep DiveYour target audience rates2003Scores, advisory report and workshop
Digital Service ScanCustomers do service tasks in their own account2003Scores per task, advisory report and workshop
Website AuditExpert review with AI analysisNo customer test2One list of priorities and a presentation
Website Experience SnapshotDeep Dive on 3 parts150Up to 2Scores, advice and presentation
Digital Market TrackerConsumers search the whole market400 per quarterWhole marketDashboard, every quarter
Targeted Flow AnalysisOne flow, thinking aloud, no researcher10 to 50 per siteYour choiceClick paths, scores, advisory report and presentation
Lab45 UsabilityOne to one, thinking aloud6 as standardNo benchmarkRecordings and findings
Mystery shoppingTest customer checks criteria--Findings per criterion
Compare the studies

Frequently asked questions about customer experience benchmarking

How do you find out why customers choose a competitor?

By having people from your target audience rate your website next to those of competitors. In WUA's Website Experience Deep Dive, 200 participants compare your site with those of three competitors. You see which site they choose and why.

How many competitors do you compare your website with in a benchmark study?

Three. In WUA's Website Experience Deep Dive every participant rates your site and those of three competitors. More does not fit the attention span of one participant. Because everyone rates all four sites, the differences are statistically stronger than with a separate group per site.

What is the difference between customer experience benchmarking, an expert review, a usability test and mystery shopping?

The difference is who judges. In a benchmark study such as WUA's Deep Dive, 200 people from your target audience do. In an expert review, such as the Website Audit, it is a specialist. A usability test follows a small number of participants one on one, and a mystery shopper checks a process against fixed criteria.

What does benchmarking your website give you?

A benchmark of your website against three competitors, with scores on seven dimensions and improvements in order of impact on conversion. In the Deep Dive, WUA works out the two most important themes in an advisory report and discusses it with your team in a workshop.

What does customer experience benchmarking cost?

At WUA a benchmark study, the Website Experience Deep Dive, starts at €16,500. For that, 200 people from your target audience compare your website with those of three competitors and you receive an advisory report with a workshop. The exact price depends on your market, among other things.

How many respondents do you need for reliable website research?

WUA's Deep Dive works with 200 respondents. At that number the margin of error is at most 6.9 percentage points, at 95% confidence. A usability test with a small group shows where and why users get stuck. Comparing yourself with competitors takes more participants.

How reliable is a benchmark study with 200 respondents?

With 200 respondents, 95% confidence and an outcome of 50%, the margin of error is ±6.9 percentage points. For other outcomes it is smaller. In WUA's Deep Dive the differences are also statistically stronger than with separate groups, because everyone rates all four sites.

Who are the participants in a benchmark study?

People from your target audience: customers, prospects or consumers who are considering your product or service. At the intake of the Deep Dive you decide together with WUA who takes part.

On which points do you compare your website with competitors?

The Website Experience Deep Dive measures seven dimensions from the WUA Customer Experience Model: appearance, brand perception, product offer, price perception, scannability, navigation and technical functioning. For each dimension you see how you score against three competitors and how much it weighs for conversion.

Does a benchmark study show which improvements raise conversion?

Yes. WUA's Deep Dive puts the improvements in order of impact on conversion. Frits, an independent player in the Dutch mortgage market, implemented the recommendations and saw 12 to 14% more conversion from homepage to appointment.

Do you research a website on mobile or on desktop?

Both. WUA's Website Experience Deep Dive researches your website on mobile and on desktop.

How long does a benchmark study take?

A Website Experience Deep Dive by WUA takes 4 to 6 weeks, from intake to workshop. In between, 200 people from your target audience rate your site and those of three competitors. After that WUA works out the analysis and the advisory report.

How much time does a benchmark study take from your own team?

Your team is involved at three moments: the intake, the choice of competitors and the workshop. WUA carries out the research and the analysis.

Which industries is customer experience benchmarking suited to?

Markets where customers compare online before they choose. WUA has run Deep Dives for energy companies such as Eneco and Pure Energie and for mortgage adviser Frits, among others, and also works for banks, insurers and telecom providers.

Can you run a benchmark study outside the Netherlands?

Yes. WUA has collected website evaluations in 24 countries. The Deep Dive compares your website with competitors in the market you choose.

Can you repeat a benchmark study?

Yes. Repeat the Deep Dive after a major redesign to see whether your position against your competitors has changed. For continuous tracking there is WUA's Digital Market Tracker, which measures your whole market every quarter.

Other studies by WUA

Know why customers choose your competitor

With a Deep Dive you know within 4 to 6 weeks.

Book an introduction