# Science summary section on the homepage: -12.4% conversion rate

- Outcome: Lost
- Page type: Homepage (Ecommerce)
- Elements: Benefit, problem, how-it-works & results sections, Trust badges & security seals
- Test run by: [Clean Commit](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/clean-commit/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://cleancommit.io/ab-tests/science-backed-summary/
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/cleancommit-science-backed-summary/

Adding a homepage section that summarized key science findings, paired with well-known medical institutes, lowered conversion rate by 12.4% and revenue per visitor by 12.8%. Clean Commit ran this 11-day test for an anonymized Shopify store and published it in its A/B test library. The drop was not statistically significant, but engagement gains did not turn into sales.

## Result

**-12.4% conversion rate**

- Conversion rate: -12.4%, and revenue per visitor -12.8%.
- Add-to-cart rate: -10.4%.
- Click-through rate rose 7.9% and bounce rate fell 5.0%. More engagement, but fewer purchases.
- Desktop conversion fell 34.6%, but only 1,002 desktop visitors saw the test.
- Flag: not statistically significant after 11 days.

## Control

The homepage had no summary of the science behind the product. Visitors had to go to a separate science page.

## Variant

A new section below the 'How does it work' block summarized the most important science findings, with cards paired with well-known medical institutes.

## Why it likely lost (our reading)

- A dense science section adds length and may slow visitors on their way to products.
- Detailed claims can prompt more questions, sending people to read rather than buy.
- Linking findings to institutes may have felt like a hard sell to some visitors.
- The short run and small desktop sample mean part of the drop could be noise.

## Caveats

Ran for only 11 days and did not reach significance; the desktop sample was just 1,002 visitors. Total sample size was not shared.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we summarize our strongest science findings on the homepage, then more visitors will buy because they can judge the product without visiting a separate page.
- Primary metric: Conversion rate
- Guardrail: Add-to-cart rate
- Guardrail: Revenue per visitor
- Guardrail: Click-through to product pages
- Who should test it: Health and wellness stores whose buyers ask for proof. Measure purchases, not just clicks, and run longer than 11 days if traffic is low.

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Credit: Clean Commit ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/cleancommit-science-backed-summary/).
Usage: Free to use, quote and build on, with credit and a link: name the practitioner or organization that ran the test and link to its LiftArchive page. The results belong to the practitioners who ran and shared them; the summaries and commentary are LiftArchive's.