Say 100 people visit your shop and 2 buy. That's a 2% conversion rate, completely normal. Now nudge it to 3%. You haven't spent a penny more on ads, but you've made 50% more sales from the exact same traffic. That's why this is the highest-leverage work in an online business.
You don't fix it with a redesign. You fix it by plugging the specific leaks, one at a time, and measuring as you go.
One number to watch
Conversion rate is simply buyers ÷ visitors. Your shop platform already tracks it. The goal isn't a magic figure, it's this month higher than last month. Pick it as your single headline number and most decisions get easier.
A 1-point lift in conversion is usually cheaper to win than the same growth bought through advertising, and it compounds on every campaign after.
The product page
This is where the "yes" happens or doesn't. The reliable wins:
- Real, generous photos. Multiple angles, in use, zoomable. This is the single biggest lever for physical products.
- Answer the obvious questions on the page. Size, materials, delivery time, returns. Every unanswered question is a reason to leave.
- One clear button. "Add to basket" should be impossible to miss and never compete with five other buttons.
- Reviews near the price. People trust other buyers far more than they trust your copy.
The checkout
The checkout is where the most sales leak away, often more than half of full baskets. The fixes are almost always about removing friction, not adding features:
- Let people buy as a guest. Forcing an account before payment is the classic sale-killer.
- Fewer steps, fewer fields. Ask only for what you need to ship and charge. Every extra box loses a few more people.
- Show the full price early. Surprise delivery costs at the final step are the number-one reason baskets get abandoned.
- Offer the payment methods people expect. Cards, plus Apple Pay / Google Pay for one-tap on phones.
Trust & speed
Two quieter factors sit under everything. Trust: a padlock in the address bar, visible returns and contact details, and real reviews all tell a nervous first-time buyer it's safe to enter their card. Speed: a slow shop bleeds customers before they see anything — every extra second of load time measurably drops sales, and phones on patchy connections feel it most.
None of this is guesswork. You change one thing, watch the number for a couple of weeks, keep what works. If you'd like a fresh pair of eyes on where your store is leaking, and a short, prioritised list of fixes, that's exactly the kind of work I do. Get in touch and we'll start with your biggest leak.