10 Ways To Increase Conversion Rate on Shopify (+FREE Checklist)

You may have spent countless hours building your Shopify store, but it takes only 0.5 seconds for a visitor to form an opinion about your site.

Luckily, visitors are not just data points but people with predictable psychological tendencies. 

After running a Shopify tech agency, I launched Bloggle, now trusted by over 2,000 merchants in 60 countries. My 10 years of experience have shaped my approach to conversion optimization, and I’m sharing my best tips here.

Don’t miss the free CRO checklist at the end to help you easily apply these strategies.

Why trust us?

• We're the creators of Bloggle, a dynamic Shopify blog builder available on the Shopify App Store that fills the gaps in native Shopify blogging capabilities.
• We're a global force: 3000+ merchants across 60 countries have trusted us to amplify their voices.
• We've already empowered 55,000+ blogs written using our versatile app.

What is conversion rate? 

The number of conversions divided by the number of people who visited your website, then multiplied by 100.

For example, if ten people visit your website and one of those people completes a desired action, your conversion rate is 1%.

Why are conversion rates SO important

Conversion rate is a statistic which shows how efficiently your website is turning visitors into sales, leads or subscribers. The sole reason we value website visits in the first place is that each visitor represents a potential paying customer.

A high conversion rate means your site effectively convinces visitors to take desired actions. A low conversion rate signals that something isn't connecting curiosity into commitment.

The process of optimizing for conversion (when done right) is extensive and involves:

• Optimizing your website's user experience
• Ensuring a seamless checkout process
• Providing clear and compelling calls to action
• Leveraging social proof 

CRO (Conversion rate optimization) explained

Conversion rate optimization (CRO) converts prospects into engaged participants by encouraging them to take an action on your website. 

CRO is NOT about driving more traffic to your site, but about using existing traffic to turn users into paying customers.

CRO directly impacts several critically important metrics such as average order value (AOV), lifetime value (LTV), and monthly recurring revenue (MRR).

Effective CRO strategies include understanding your current customer behavior and determining the right actions to adjust that behavior to boost sales.

Real quick: average conversion rates on Shopify

Shopify sites on average have a conversion rate of around 2.86%, while new stores usually start with a 0 to 2% conversion rate. 

Knowing averages can help set realistic expectations and understand the odds, but your focus should never be on reaching or beating the average, but rather on improving your own conversion rate.

Starting from zero

If your store’s conversion rate is close to zero, don’t get discouraged—every successful store started at zero, too. The key is to focus on building a solid foundation and gaining traction before worrying about optimizing conversions.

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Here's a non-intimidating to-do list to get you off your feet if your store is brand new:

• You need a brand image

Make brand guidelines with your logo, colors, fonts, and background patterns. It doesn't have to be perfect, for starters, but make sure it's cohesive.

• Cover the basics

Make it easy for customers to find what they're looking for with solid navigation and a functional search bar.

• Get first customers

Provide discounts, free shipping, or freebies to get first purchases. Free shipping is usually adequate.

• Don't wait to be discovered

Reach out to potential customers and build a loyal customer base through reaching out by email or social media.

10 ways to increase your Shopify conversion rate

#1 Products with reviews are 270% more likely to be purchased

Humans naturally trust what others approve of, making social indication a striking mechanism for your Shopify store. 

Displaying reviews on product pages can significantly boost conversion rates. Research shows that products with five reviews are 270% more likely to be purchased than those with no reviews.

Reviews have a more substantial effect on higher-priced items. For lower-priced products, reviews can increase conversion rates by 190%. For higher-priced products, this increase can reach 380%.

Leveraging social proof through featuring reviews on Shopify builds trust and credibility, encouraging potential customers to make purchases.

Counterintuitively, consumers are skeptical of perfect ratings. Purchase likelihood peaks with ratings in the 4.0-4.7 range and decreases as ratings approach 5.0.

Having non-perfect reviews helps maintain the authenticity and reliability of your brand.

The first three steps to optimizing for conversions are:

1. Display reviews and ratings on all pages (products, collections).
2. Embrace negative reviews to establish credibility.

Generate reviews for products with few reviews to establish that all items have feedback.

#2 Creating urgency boosts purchases by 33%

Provoking a sense of urgency can boost conversion rates by 33%. When creating urgency, don’t compromise customer experience. Avoid overly aggressive tactics that could detract from the overall experience. 

Some good tactics to light a spark without burning the shop down are:

• Limited Time Offers

Communicate the offer and its duration. Transparency builds trust and makes the urgency feel genuine.

• Countdown Timers

Tap into FOMO by using a countdown timer - a highly effective visual representation of limited time, creating a strong sense of urgency. 

You can integrate countdown timers through code or widgets on your product, collection, and cart pages.

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• Display Stock Availability

Show how many items are left in stock to create urgency, combine with a countdown timer for most success.

• Highlight Social Proof

Displaying the number of people currently viewing a product or how many have already purchased it can create a sense of competition.

• Offer Exclusive Deals

Create exclusive deals that are available only to a limited number of people. This exclusivity drives urgency and encourages quick action.#3 High-quality product imagesWhen it comes to online shopping, great product images are crucial in shaping a customer’s buying decision. 

High-quality images help build trust in your brand and show that you care about the details. Well-lit, professional photos can make your products look more appealing and premium, whereas poor images can make even the best products seem low-quality.

The conversion rates of your store often depend on how effectively you showcase your products.

Customers want to see texture, color, and how items are used  in real life. 

A great example is Hello Boku, where the product images clearly demonstrate not only the product itself but its value and function, making it much more attractive to potential buyers.

Related Article: Best Ways to Drive Traffic to Your Shopify Store

#4 First-order offers build stronger connections

Offering a special deal for first-time buyers is a great way to build stronger connections with your audience and increase customer retention. Everyone loves a good deal, and giving something extra with their first order can create a sense of appreciation and loyalty.

The key to a successful first-order offer is ensuring that what you're providing is genuinely valuable to your target audience. Whether it's a discount, a money-back guarantee, or a complimentary service, it should be relevant and appealing to your niche.

For example, offering a discount on the first order, or a free beauty consultation for a beauty brand, can encourage new customers to make that initial purchase. 

Customers who receive free products are more likely to leave reviews and share photos, which you can leverage in future marketing efforts.

#5 Have a strategy for out-of-stock products

Managing out-of-stock items effectively is essential for maintaining conversion rates. When bestsellers are unavailable, it can frustrate customers and lead to lost sales. 

Here's how you can manage this:

• Stock management: Use tools like Inventory Planner to forecast sales and restock before running out.
• Back-in-stock alerts: Always provide an option for customers to subscribe to restock notifications using tools like Back in Stock, keeping them engaged.
• Reorganize collections: Move out-of-stock products toward the end of your collection pages, ensuring available items get the attention they deserve.

#6 Simplified user experience improves conversion rates

Simplify the user experience to capture attention immediately. Your site must be easy to navigate and have clear and concise information.

Don’t focus on details or aesthetics until you’ve made sure your Shopify website works and is easy to use. No amount of fancy widgets can compensate for a non-functional and disorganized user experience. 

Here's how to optimize based on your store's needs:

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#7 Consistent product visibility drives sales

Consistent product visibility across your Shopify store is crucial in driving sales. Your products should be easily accessible from all pages, especially the homepage.

86% of visitors want to see product information upfront, so don't hide your products. Instead, showcase them prominently to keep them in the minds of potential buyers.

#8 Boost organic traffic (SEO)

Your conversion rate depends heavily on your acquisition channels. If you rely solely on social media, your conversion rates will likely be low. 

SEO and organic traffic on the other hand can deliver higher-quality visitors, especially when you focus on middle- and bottom-funnel keywords.

Blogging on Shopify is a powerful way to improve your SEO. Regularly updated blogs attract more visitors to your site, keep them engaged, and encourage repeat visits, ultimately boosting your conversion rates and customer loyalty.

#9 Site-Wide Banners and Popups Highlight Key Offers

Using site-wide banners and popups is a powerful way to capture visitors' attention and highlight your best offers. 

Banners can display important information like free shipping, limited-time discounts, or special promotions, while popups can engage users more directly with targeted messages.

For better results, consider trying tools like Wisepops to create highly customizable and effective popups that enhance user experience and drive conversions.

#10 Optimizing CTAs - a crash course

A call to action (CTA) is any instruction on your website that asks a user to take action. 

Before you start your own CTA testing and experimentation, consider that thousands of tests and studies have already been done on the topic. 

Of course, what works for someone doesn't work for everyone, but what works for everyone will most likely work for you as well. 

Here's a breakdown of the DOs and DON'Ts on all elements of a CTA based on over 20 case studies:

I’m feeling overwhelmed - where do I start?

Start with an audit of your current performance:

1. Identify pages with low conversion rates using a tool such as Google Analytics.
2. Check for a page with high traffic but low conversions for faster results.
3. Use a heatmap tool to analyze user interaction on the page.
4. Understand how users interact with the page.
5. Create a new version of the page optimized for conversions using the tips from this blog.

To help you out we’ve organized the steps you need to take into our FREE Shopify conversion optimization checklist.

6. Use Hotjar or any other tool to run an A/B test on the identified page.
7. Compare the new version of the page with the old version to see which performs better.
8. If the updated page performs better, make it a permanent part of your website and consider applying similar changes to other pages.
9. If the original page performs better, go back to the drawing board to identify other potential improvements.

While going from zero to a hero doesn’t happen overnight, following the steps outlined in this article, you can undeniably improve your conversion rate on Shopify.