How Customer Thermometer Revamped Its SaaS Site and Boosted Conversions with WooThemes

Background

Customer Thermometer emerged in December 2010 to tackle the low response rates common with long surveys. Founder Mark Copeman, known for his work at 8:45TV and online training, saw an opportunity to capture quick feedback via a single click embedded in emails. The tool sends customers a branded image survey, letting them click a happy, neutral or sad face in one step.

In six months the team went from concept to a working prototype. They tested the response images in their own training emails and saw open rates stay high while feedback started flowing. That early promise inspired a full site launch on WordPress later that year.

Original Site Build

In September 2010, the team sketched wireframes and hired a designer to craft a unique look. They then built a custom WordPress theme from scratch without using a framework. At first it held up well, but as they added new features it quickly became a maintenance burden.

Each layout change required manual CSS updates deep in the stylesheet. Simple tasks like adding a new bullet style or adjusting a homepage banner meant navigating dozens of lines of code. This slowed feature rollouts and risked layout inconsistencies across pages.

Identifying the Issues

By July 2012, Google Analytics data pointed to high bounce rates on the signup and pricing pages. PPC reports revealed that paid traffic was struggling to convert after the initial click. The team also noticed tablet traffic rising from 8% to over 15% in six months.

They ran heatmap tests to see where users scrolled and clicked. Most interactions happened in the header and main content, while sidebar links were rarely used. These insights made it clear that sidebars created noise, and mobile visitors were dropping off early.

Switching to a Robust Framework

Instead of another ground-up build, Copeman chose PixelPress from WooThemes for its stable WooFramework. The team had used WooThemes in past projects, so this felt like a safer base. PixelPress offered built-in breakpoints, shortcode columns and theme update support.

After a quick trial install, they confirmed most custom layouts could be replicated within the theme’s page builder. This choice cut the time spent on CSS fixes by at least half and ensured future WordPress or PHP updates would not break the site.

Design and Development Workflow

The project kicked off with a fixed deadline of September 1, 2012. The team redrew the sitemap on paper, then sketched wireframes for key pages. Designers produced mockups for the homepage, pricing page and Take a Tour section, all following the new layout rules.

Developers used the theme’s shortcode system to build flexible grids and content blocks. They tweaked CSS via a child theme to adjust fonts, colours and button styles. With clear guidelines, non-technical colleagues could update content without touching code.

Timeline and Project Management

With only six weeks on the calendar, daily stand-ups kept each team member on track. Tasks were managed in a simple spreadsheet, prioritizing core pages first. Every Friday there was a quick review of goals and any blockers, so adjustments happened fast.

This agile approach meant design and development ran in parallel. As soon as the designer finished a layout, the developer integrated it into PixelPress, then handed it back for copy edits. Its cut feedback loops to hours rather then days.

Mobile Responsiveness

PixelPress shipped with responsive CSS out of the box, but the team still tested on actual devices. They used BrowserStack to check iOS and Android for common screen widths. Buttons and form fields were adjusted to stay clickable, and images were optimized for smaller viewports.

The sticky top navigation was tested on tablets to confirm it didn’t cover content. Padding and margins were tweaked so text blocks wrapped cleanly, and mobile page speed gains were achieved by deferring non-essential scripts.

Early Results and Feedback

The relaunch on September 11, 2012 immediately delivered cleaner page layouts. Bounce rates on the homepage fell by 12%, while average time on page rose from 1 minute 20 seconds to around 2 minutes. Signups from PPC traffic doubled in the first month alone.

Users left positive comments about how quick it was to find the pricing table and start a trial. The bold headings and concise text made the product value clear, and new customers could get setup without delay.

Ongoing Optimization

Post-launch, the team integrated Optimise.ly to run A/B tests on headlines, images and buttons. They also scheduled the blog migration into the same theme for a consistent brand experience. Monthly reviews ensure data drives new tweaks and design updates continuously.