Bolder category links on collection pages: -20.1% conversion
Test run byClean CommitCRO agency
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsRestyling the category links on mobile collection pages, with a new order and color highlights, cut conversion rate 20.1% and revenue per visitor 26.3%.
Clean Commit ran this test for an anonymized Shopify store and published it in its A/B test library.
The test stopped a change that looked like an improvement from going live.
- Conversion rate: -20.1%. Negative: the original had a 98.5% probability of performing better.
- Revenue per visitor: -26.3%, the largest drop in the test.
- Orders: -21.4%, and average order value fell 7.8%.
- The source says the result fell just short of full significance, but every key metric moved down.
The change
The variant reorders the category links and adds color highlights.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
Mobile collection pages showed the original category links in their usual order and style.
Variant
The category titles and links swapped order, and each category got a color highlight so it stood out from the rest of the page.
Why it likely lost
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Bright highlights may have pulled attention away from the products, which are what shoppers came to see.
- Changing the order of titles and links may have made the links harder to scan, not easier.
- Louder navigation can invite shoppers to jump around between categories instead of picking a product.
Caveats: The test ran for 11 days on 8,563 mobile visitors. The source reports a 98.5% probability that the original was better, short of full significance.
Who ran it
Clean Commit ran this test for a Shopify store (anonymized) and published the results (Clean Commit A/B test library). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Clean Commit →
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we make category links on collection pages more prominent, then more shoppers will buy because they can find the right products faster.
- Primary metric
- Mobile conversion rate
- Guardrails
- Revenue per visitor
- Product card click-through rate
- Add-to-cart rate
- Who should test it
- Stores with many subcategories where shoppers clearly struggle to find the right list. If your category links already work, this result suggests louder styling can hurt more than help.
Questions
Should category links on collection pages stand out?
Not necessarily. In this test, making them louder cut conversion by about a fifth.
Links should be easy to find without competing with the products.
Why would clearer navigation lower sales?
Strong visual cues pull the eye. If they draw attention away from products, shoppers may browse more and buy less.
Is 8,563 visitors enough for a test like this?
It was enough to show a large drop with high probability.
Smaller effects would need more traffic or a longer run.
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