Case Studies
Outdoor Living Brand Saw 50% Conversions Lift on High-Traffic Calculator Tool with Targeted Testing
Three research-backed A/B tests turned a mid-funnel cost calculator into a consistent lead generator for Trex, lifting conversion rates by an average of 50%
Overview
Trex was already winning the traffic game. Their Cost Calculator was drawing a steady stream of high-intent visitors from SEO and paid media, so we knew people were actively researching their next decking project. The problem: those visitors weren't converting, and Trex was leaving leads on the table from traffic they'd already paid to earn.
Seer ran a CRO Audit and iterative A/B testing program to identify the exact friction points, and conducted three targeted experiments to fix them. The result: conversion rates climbed from roughly 16% to an average of 24% — a 50% lift — without adding a single dollar to media spend.
The Challenge
For a brand like Trex, the Cost Calculator is a core strategic asset. Homeowners and contractors use it to scope projects, estimate budgets, and ultimately decide whether to take the next step with a vendor or installer. It sits at the exact moment someone shifts from browsing to buying, propelling them toward the bottom of the funnel.
Trex had invested heavily in SEO and paid media to put the calculator tool in front of the right people at the right time — and it was working. But the tool's user experience was quietly undermining all of that upstream investment.
The lead form felt like an optional add-on rather than a natural next step. Users would engage with the calculator, get what they came for, and exit without converting into a lead that Trex could act on. Every session that ended without a form fill represented wasted media spend, a missed sales conversation, and a real dollar gap between traffic performance and business results.
The Strategy
Rather than guessing at solutions, we grounded every experiment in evidence.
Starting with a CRO Audit, we analyzed the Cost Calculator experience through both quantitative and qualitative lenses to identify where and why users were disengaging. The audit surfaced a clear hypothesis: the lead form setup was discouraging calculator users from continuing their deck shopping experience with Trex.
Usability testing validated the hypothesis and identified specific user issues. Real users confirmed that the path from "I've calculated my estimate" to "here's how to move forward" felt unclear and low-priority. Those qualitative signals gave us confidence that UX/UI adjustments were the right lever to pull.
We ran three structured A/B tests, each designed to answer a specific question about what would most effectively move users from engagement to conversion:
-
Test 1 focused on repositioning the lead form as a natural continuation of the calculator experience rather than a separate ask, to reduce the perceived friction of completing it.
-
Test 2 went further, streamlining the overall user flow to shorten the distance between "I have my estimate" and "I want to move forward."
-
Test 3 refined lead routing criteria and condensed two pathways into a single option, ensuring users were directed to the right next step based on where they were in their decision process.
The Results
→ Test 1: +23% increase in lead form conversions
→ Test 2: +40% increase in lead form conversions
→ Test 3: +3% increase in detailed estimate conversions
→ ~50% average lift across all three tests
Conversion rates climbed from roughly 16% to 24% — a ~50% average lift — with each test contributing measurable, independent impact.
No single experiment was a silver bullet; what drove results was the discipline of building an evidence-first testing program, running experiments with clear hypotheses, and iterating based on what the data said.
The business implication is significant: the same traffic Trex was already investing in is now generating substantially more qualified leads without any increase in media spend. For a brand competing in a considered-purchase category with long sales cycles and high average order values, that efficiency gain compounds quickly.
So what? CRO and experimentation aren't about redesigning everything from scratch. They're about finding the specific moments where users disengage, forming a clear hypothesis about why, and running disciplined tests to prove what moves the needle.
Ready to find out what your tools are leaving on the table? Let's talk.
Contact Us"Our partnership with Seer allowed us to combine their analytical expertise with our deep understanding of our customers. Together, we transformed data into actionable improvements that strengthened both the customer experience and business performance."
- Tina Johnson, Director, Digital Marketing at Trex