In the world of e-commerce, understanding the needs and behaviors of your customers is crucial to building a successful online presence. One of the most powerful ways to develop this understanding is through the use of heatmap tools.
In this blog post, we'll show you why heatmap tools make sense for your Shopify store and shed light on how they can help merchants optimize their websites, analyze user behavior and ultimately increase conversion rates.
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Do you need support with the integration of heatmaps in your Shopify store? As Shopify Plus experts, we will be happy to assist you and help you adapt your store to these requirements. Get in touch with us.
What are heatmap tools?
Heatmap tools (or AI heatmap tools) are important instruments for marketers, online store operators and developers to understand and visualize the movements and interactions of website visitors. These tools clarify the behavior of users as they navigate through a website by recording where they click, which areas the mouse moves over and where they scroll. Heatmap tools can be used to track and record clicks and interactions and filter data according to various parameters such as pages, sessions or demographic characteristics.
This results in so-called heatmaps that illustrate these interactions in a clear way. Some tools even offer video recordings of mouse movements. In combination with internal data, heatmap tools provide valuable insights to assess the effectiveness of web design and identify potential for optimizing the user experience and conversion rate.
Reading tip: What makes a good store design for Shopify.
Instead of complex numbers, heatmaps use a color scale to display data intuitively. This color scale makes heatmaps easy to understand, with warmer colors like red and orange indicating high values and cooler colors indicating low values. This visual representation allows companies to quickly identify which areas of their websites are attracting attention and which may need to be revised to improve the user experience.
The role of heatmap tools in optimizing the customer journey
Heatmap tools play a crucial role in optimizing the customer journey for Shopify merchants. By visualizing user behavior, they provide valuable insights into every step of the user experience. A heatmap is an analytical tool that provides insights into various aspects of interaction with the website, including
Which elements are getting the most attention.
Where visitors click (apart from links).
How much time is spent in which places.
Where customers leave your website.
How customers fill out forms on your website.
What users like and don't like.
Heatmaps visually highlight the areas that get the most attention and map the clicks. By being able to see exactly which areas of the website are attracting attention and which may be overlooked, you can tailor the customer journey to create a seamless and engaging online experience.
Reading tip: In this article, we give you the most important tips for increasing customer satisfaction in your store.
But heatmap tools are not only an instrument for visualizing user behaviour, they also offer numerous opportunities to optimize the customer journey and thus increase conversions. Here are nine ways in which heatmap software can support you:
Customer journey mapping: heatmap tools allow you to track the customer journey in detail and track every interaction step users take with your website. Through thorough customer journey mapping, you can design your website to be seamless and intuitive, leading to an improved user experience and ultimately higher conversion rates. To simplify the mapping process, you can use appropriate customer journey mapping tools to help you create it.
Improve UX/Usability: Heatmap analysis improves the user experience by showing where customers are lost on the website. Studies by Forrester show that improving the user experience can increase conversion rates by up to 400%. Heatmaps show how customers interact with your website so you can customize it accordingly.
Analysis of website design and content structure: Heatmaps help to analyze the design and structure of your website. They show how often certain ads or banners have been displayed and viewed by visitors and how often they actually interact with them. This data helps to identify elements that attract users' attention and which need to be optimized.
A/B testing: Heatmaps provide valuable data on which landing pages convert best. They also show why one page converts better than another, so you can use the results to increase conversion rates on other pages too.
Above the fold analysis: The analysis of "Above the fold" provides insights into the first impression of a page. It shows whether users are below the field of vision and are missing out on important content that could be convincing.
Session recording: With functions such as session recording, you can track the activities of individual users on your website. This allows you to understand visitor behavior and make potential improvements.
Scroll heatmap: A scroll heatmap shows how far visitors scroll on a page. This helps to understand whether customers are staying on the page and which elements are getting the most engagement.
Record clicks: With a click heatmap, you can see what users think is clickable. This helps to understand whether the placement of buttons or links is effective and whether there are any problems.
Recording mouse movements and hovering: Recording mouse movements and hovering shows how users interact with different elements of your website. This helps to remove distractions and improve the user experience, which ultimately leads to a higher conversion rate.
Reading tip: The Shopify app Gorgias helps you to offer your customers optimal customer service.
Choosing the optimal heatmap tools for Shopify: An overview of the best solutions
With so many options available, it can be a challenge to make the perfect choice that best suits your specific needs. In this section, we take an in-depth look at the 5 best solutions for Shopify heatmap tools.
Mouseflow
The Shopify Heatmap Plug-in Mouseflow offers a comprehensive solution for Shopify stores. Through automated user journeys with friction scores, Shopify merchants can recognize how users visit their websites and identify potential obstacles. Especially handy is the live heatmap feature, which makes it possible to track user interaction with dynamic elements in real time. In addition to heatmaps, Mouseflow also offers a variety of other tools, including session replays, funnels, forms and feedback options.
Mouseflow's heatmap feature provides detailed insights into user behavior, showing where users scroll, what they click on and how they move around the page with the mouse. Mouseflow offers different plans so that users can choose the plan that best suits their specific needs.
For users who do not need more than 500 recordings per month and want to store the data for a single domain for one month, Mouseflow offers all benefits free of charge. A free trial version is available for all other packages. Mouseflow offers users the opportunity to test and use the platform free of charge, while the starter package is available from just €31 per month.
Advantages:
Easy implementation in your Shopify store
Detailed information on user behavior
free plan available
intuitive operation
Disadvantages:
A paid plan must be selected to unlock all the benefits.
With many recordings, the tool can quickly become "expensive", which is why you should choose the right plan right from the start
Hotjar
With a wide range of tools such as heatmaps, on-page polls and surveys, Hotjar enables a holistic analysis of user behavior. The tool not only offers the creation of various heat maps and the recording of mouse movements and clicks of website visitors, but also enables comprehensive behavioral analysis. The integrated survey function is particularly practical, allowing website users to be asked directly about the user-friendliness of the site.
Reading tip: You can find outhow to win back customers in this article.
The tool offers a free trial version that makes it easier to get started with website analysis and optimization. The costs are then based on the website's traffic, with sites with low visitor numbers benefiting from the low prices of the Plus package. Prices start at €39 per month for the Plus plan and 100 sessions per day up to €213 per month for the comprehensive Scale package.
Advantages:
Straightforward and easy integration with Shopify
all paid versions include unlimited heatmaps
all paid versions include 365 days of data storage
intuitive user interface
Cons:
No free trial, but the free plan includes up to 35 daily user sessions
Relatively expensive in comparison
Inspectlet
Inspectlet makes it possible to observe individual visitor behavior on websites with detailed session recordings. With Inspectlet, videos of users can be recorded as they use a website, allowing every mouse movement, click and keystroke to be recorded and analyzed. In addition, Inspectlet integrates eye tracking heatmaps and A/B testing to gain insights into user behavior.
Inspectlet works optimally with Shopify and is even used by Shopify itself. By analyzing the data, areas where improvements are needed are quickly identified. Error messages are also recorded and the integrated analysis functions make it easier to evaluate the large amounts of data.
The company offers a free version as well as five additional packages with advanced features to meet the needs of different users. The cheapest package starts at $39 and includes 2,500 sessions. Prices increase depending on the number of sessions. The most comprehensive package costs $499 for 250,000 sessions.
Advantages:
Easy integration into Shopify
Versatile analysis tool such as eye tracking heatmaps and A/B tests
Various customization options and selection of plans
many well-known companies such as Shopify and eBay rely on the tool
Disadvantages
limited functions in the free version
extensive training may be necessary for new users to be able to use the tool effectively
Reading tip: Find out why customer segmentation can be useful.
Lucky Orange
Lucky Orange is another effective Shopify heatmap plug-in from the Shopify App Store. This tool allows you to examine visitor behavior, product interactions and checkout abandonment behavior and provides actionable insights for better conversions. Not only can you closely examine the performance of each element on your pages, but you can also analyze user behavior with dynamic elements such as forms and pop-ups.
The platform also allows you to record session recordings with real-time observations that show how users navigate and interact with different elements of your online store.
A free 7-day trial is available for the Shopify app. After that, you can opt for a free plan that includes 100 monthly sessions, or you can choose a more comprehensive paid package. The cheapest build plan starts at $32 including 5,000 monthly sessions. The other plans are based on the number of sessions, with the most expensive scale plan costing $600 and including 300,000 sessions per month.
Advantages:
all plans include an unlimited number of team members
Fully CCPA and GDPR compliant
Can be installed directly via the app store in Shopify
Disadvantages:
limited storage of recorded heatmaps (30-60 days, depending on the plan)
Reading tip: How to increasethe average order value (AOV).
FigPii
FigPii helps you measure the performance of your web pages through A/B testing and split URL testing to increase the success of campaigns. It specializes in using heatmaps to help you optimize conversion funnels to achieve your campaign goals.
The Shopify heatmap integration helps you visualize user behavior, identify problem areas and track key conversion metrics. FigPii gives you access to click, movement and scroll heatmaps to understand user behavior and make informed decisions to optimize your Shopify website.
You can use the app within a 14-day free trial. After that, you can choose from three paid plans, priced according to the number of visitors. The cheapest plan starts at $149.99 for 30,000 monthly users.
Advantages:
Integrated A/B tests and surveys
Recording and repetition of visitor actions
Intuitive user interface
Integration with other platforms such as Google Analytics
Disadvantages:
Paid plans can be expensive depending on the number of users (especially for companies with high traffic volumes)
These Shopify merchants rely on heatmap analysis
These Shopify merchants rely on heatmap analytics to optimize their online business and provide their customers with an improved shopping experience. By using Shopify heatmap tools, they can accurately understand the behavior of their website visitors and make informed decisions to optimize their store.
Shopify merchant LFDY, also known as Live Fast Die Young, relies on Hotjar to analyze user behavior using heatmaps. As a direct-to-consumer brand (D2C), LFDY sells trendy fashion for young people in its stores in Amsterdam, Berlin, Munich, Hamburg, Cologne and its home city of Düsseldorf. The company also operates its own Shopify Plus online store, where customers can discover the latest designs and collections.
The tool enables the company to accurately understand user behavior on their website by using heatmaps to visualize how visitors interact with different elements. This allows LFDY to gain insights into which areas of their website are particularly attractive and which may need to be optimized to improve the user experience and increase conversion rates.
Reading tip: Find out more about the collaboration between Latori and LFDY in this article.
The renowned sneaker seller Asphaltgold also relies on Hotjar in its online store. By using these powerful analytics tools, Asphaltgold can precisely understand the behavior of its website visitors and thus improve the user experience and increase conversion rates. Based in Germany, Asphaltgold is known for its high-quality sneakers and streetwear products that are appreciated by sneaker enthusiasts worldwide. By using Hotjar, Asphaltgold can ensure that its online store meets the expectations of its customers and provides a seamless shopping experience.
Reading tip: Read this article to find outwhat benefits the migration to Shopify Plus and the collaboration with Latori brought Asphaltgold.
The Shopify retailer waterdrop relies on Lucky Orange to gain valuable insights into user behavior on its website. waterdrop has made a name for itself as a provider of innovative drinking solutions and offers its customers high-quality products based on natural ingredients. By using Lucky Orange, waterdrop can analyze the behavior of its website visitors in detail and gain important insights into how users interact with the products and content on offer.
Conclusion
As you can see, heatmap tools are an extremely useful way for Shopify merchants to understand user behavior, improve the user experience, increase conversion rates and ultimately increase sales. By visualizing visitor behavior using heatmaps, companies can gain important insights into customer behavior and make informed decisions to optimize their online store. Based on this data, you can use customer journey mapping to specifically address the problems of the customer journey and optimize your website.
As Shopify Plus experts, we at Latori are here to help you implement heatmap tools in your Shopify store and ensure your business reaps the benefits of efficient analytics. Get in touch with us.
