Ecommerce & Retail · Growth problem

Traffic isn't converting

A falling or stubbornly low conversion rate is one of the most commonly misdiagnosed problems in ecommerce, because it's usually treated as a single metric to optimise rather than a symptom with several possible independent causes. The right diagnosis depends on segmenting conversion by device, source, and category, then working out whether the issue sits with the traffic itself, the product experience, the checkout, or the operational reality behind the product.

1. 01

   Traffic mix shift towards lower-intent sources

   If the composition of traffic has changed — more social, more broad-match paid search, more top-of-funnel content — a falling blended CVR may simply reflect a genuine change in average purchase intent, not a deterioration of the site experience itself.

2. 02

   PDP quality gaps relative to purchase decision requirements

   Product pages that lack the specific information a category needs to convert — sizing detail, materials, delivery timelines, return terms, sufficient imagery — will underperform regardless of traffic quality, and the gap is often category-specific rather than site-wide.

3. 03

   Mobile experience lagging desktop

   Where the majority of traffic is mobile but conversion rate is materially lower than desktop, the friction is frequently in page speed, checkout field design, or payment options rather than in demand itself.

4. 04

   Stock or delivery reality undermining otherwise strong intent

   A customer who reaches a product page ready to buy, only to find limited stock, an unclear or slow delivery estimate, or a delivery cost surprise late in checkout, will frequently abandon — and this shows up as a conversion problem, not a merchandising or stock problem.

5. 05

   Trust signals insufficient for the price point or category

   Higher-consideration or higher-price categories typically require stronger trust signals — reviews, guarantees, clear returns policy, payment security — than lower-consideration ones, and a generic site-wide approach to trust content can leave specific categories under-supported.

6. 06

   Payment or finance options not matching customer expectation

   The absence of an expected payment method, buy-now-pay-later option, or clear total cost (including delivery) before the final checkout step can suppress conversion specifically at the point of payment, which shows up in checkout funnel data rather than on-page behaviour.

Looks fineOverall CVR has dropped, so the site has a problem

A blended CVR fall can be entirely explained by a shift in traffic mix towards lower-intent sources, with no change at all to the underlying site experience — segmenting by source is essential before concluding the site is the issue.

Looks fineMobile traffic converts worse, so mobile UX must be improved first

Mobile traffic frequently includes a higher share of research-stage, lower-intent visits than desktop by nature of how it's used; the gap may be partly structural rather than entirely fixable through UX changes.

Looks fineCart abandonment is high, so checkout needs a redesign

High cart abandonment is often driven by unexpected delivery costs or timelines revealed late in the journey, which a checkout redesign won't fix if the underlying delivery proposition itself is uncompetitive.

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