Libby Bearman takes us through this week’s CRO Site of the Week winner, Last.fm. High Position’s Head of CRO, James Root (@RootToMarket) will be rewarding their excellence with something from the CRO Drawer and giving them a shout out on Twitter. Find out why Libby believes they deserve such an award:

WHAT DOES THE SITE DO?

Put simply, this site is a vast, online music library, recommending new music based on what you’ve already listened to.

WHAT DOES THE SITE SAY THEY DO?

“Last.fm is a music recommendation service. You use Last.fm by signing up and downloading The Scrobbler, which helps you discover more music based on the songs you play…”

“…Scrobbles mean we can deliver personalised recommendations for every single Last.fm listener, every single day. We compare what you play to the scrobbles of millions of listeners around the world, meaning your recommendations are the result of more than 43 billion scrobbles and counting.”

WHAT DOES THE SITE DO WELL?

There is no mistaking what this site does when you arrive at the homepage: Simple, 3-word headline, slightly more descriptive strapline and a super-clickable Call to Action
The red and black colour scheme offers a bold contrast against the white background, ensuring all the important information stands our immediately
The images of the artists featured on the homepage are clear, eye catching and tell you how many listens they’ve had for a bit of social proof to boot

Signing up is simple. You can use facebook, or with just three fields to complete, you can create an account. There is a CAPTCHA at the end, but at least they explain why it’s there, removing some of the frustration:

The friendly language with straightforward instructions inform you on exactly what’s coming next… and those scrobblins (the lovable lil red mascots throughout the site) are pretty great!

WHAT ELSE DOES THE SITE DO WELL?

The “Your Recommendations” section mirrors the enticing homepage with helpful explanations for new music you’re yet to familiarise yourself with
The snap shot of “Your Library” is all interactive and clickable, encouraging you to continue to explore and discover new music
More clear and succinct Calls to Action allow for intuitive site navigation

WHAT DOES THE SITE NOT DO WELL?

When browsing the music page, the feeling of “spaciousness” disappears. One of the main cuplrits is most definitely due to the introduction of adverts. Whilst most users appreciate the need to advertise, the execution here is intrusive: I am not enjoying that Euromillions guy following me around while I simply browse the music catalogue – TEST IT!

Yuck!

After loving the red/black colour scheme on the homepage and sign-ups, it’s a shame to see it diluted with a (Euromillions!) blue on the charts pages and beyond. Surely, shades of red and grey would help that sleek design carry through? – TEST IT!

And finally, there are no social links on the homepage, which is strange as Last.fm make excellent use of Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Instagram. These can be found on the about us page, but the links aren’t particularly engaging. – TEST IT!

Congratulations Last.fm! Your site has come on leaps and bounds as far as both aethetics and usability are concerned, but I think there’s still a way to go. With some clever CRO Testing, you could be offering an even more enjoyable user experience. You get some CRO Crap from James’ drawer! #Win!