Online real estate platform Housing.com, which is on track to receive 50 million visits this year, has achieved 38 percent increase in conversions across browsers.
Housing Go, a Progressive Web App (PWA) supported by Google, delivered higher-value users, with visitors spending 10 percent longer per session and returning more often.
Slow load times on mobile phones significantly affected conversions. They measured the impact of users’ average page-load time and found that even a one-second improvement brought a significant boost in the conversion rate.
Results
# 38 percent more conversions
# 40 percent lower bounce rate
# 10 percent longer average session
# 30 percent faster page load
Poor connectivity and the prevalence of low-end devices also hindered Housing.com’s growth. They developed a native app to ensure that mobile users can work offline and re-engage. But current and potential customers were very data-sensitive, because the cost of Internet access was still high, and many consumers hesitated to use data or space to download the native app.
Relying on technological advancements and the capabilities of web browsers and web applications such as Service Workers, IndexedDB, Add to Home Screen, and Push Notifications, Housing.com created a fast PWA.
With the new PWA, Housing.com achieved 38 percent increase in conversion rates and over 40 percent drop in the bounce rate.
To decrease load times, Housing.com added Service Workers and streamlined their site to help consumers quickly find what they’re looking for. Users can continue browsing properties and reviewing previous searches, all while offline.
“High-end smartphones are not that prevalent in our target user base,” says Vivek Jain, Housing.com chief product and technology officer. “With our new PWA, we could get past our users’ hesitance to download our app in their low-end devices, yet give them a wonderful experience.”
Page-load performance increased by over 30 percent, and average time-per-session increased 10 percent across all browsers.
