Case study - Helping beauty shoppers find their next purchase
Product recommendations helped more shoppers complete a purchase. A product-page sale message also increased average order value in a separate A/B test.
- Business
- Beauty retailer
- Service
- A/B testing and conversion optimization
Give shoppers a reason to stay
When a product is sold out, shoppers need another way to find what they came for. A clear offer on the product page can also help them decide what to add to their basket.
This project tested both moments for a beauty retailer. Each A/B test compared a change to the shopping experience with the existing version, measuring how it affected purchases and order value.
Offer alternatives when a product sells out
The out-of-stock popup gives shoppers a selection of other products to consider. Each option includes an image, price, rating and a clear shopping action, so the customer can continue browsing from the same place.
The test split traffic evenly between the two versions. Across 127,160 visits, it reported a 6.06% increase in conversion rate. That means a larger share of visits ended in a purchase.
The same test reported 22.54% more revenue per visit. Revenue per visit measures how much the store earns across all visits, including those that do not end in a purchase.
Revenue per visit increased from $2.94 to $3.60 in the recommendation test.
Average order value increased by 17.06%, from $69.27 to $81.09. This measures the average amount spent in each completed order.
Average order value increased from $69.27 to $81.09 across 5,516 orders.
Put the offer closer to the buying decision
A separate test explored a final-day sale message on product pages. Showing the offer where shoppers choose a product made it easier to see the promotion while deciding what to buy.
The test reported an 18.16% increase in average order value, from $87.84 to $103.79 across 1,033 orders.
Average order value increased from $87.84 to $103.79 in the sale-message test.
The reported results
These are relative increases compared with each test’s original version.
| Test | Measure | Reported increase |
|---|---|---|
| Out-of-stock recommendations | Conversion rate | 6.06% |
| Out-of-stock recommendations | Revenue per visit | 22.54% |
| Out-of-stock recommendations | Average order value | 17.06% |
| Product-page sale message | Average order value | 18.16% |
The daily-impact figures in the screenshots are estimates based on the test results. The figures for 100% of traffic project what the change could produce if every visitor saw it.
Find the next useful test for your store
A useful test starts with a specific shopper problem. For this project, that meant helping someone continue after finding a sold-out item and making a promotion visible at the point of purchase.
We bring that approach to Shopify stores. Our CRO audit looks for friction in the shopping journey and helps you decide which changes deserve attention first.