# Pulsing red dot on the account icon: +81% account icon clicks

- Outcome: Won
- Page type: Site-wide (Ecommerce)
- Elements: Navigation & mega menus, Bestseller badges & product labels
- Test run by: [David Jones](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/david-jones/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://wingify.com/success-stories/david-jones-accelerates-digital-transformation-with-ab-tastys-experimentation-and-personalization-solutions/
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/david-jones-account-icon-pulsing-red-dot/

A small pulsing red dot next to the header account icon raised clicks on that icon by 81% and clicks on the sign-up button by 31%. David Jones, the Australian department store, ran this test for logged-out desktop users, and it was published as a VWO case study. It ran in the lead-up to the launch of the store's loyalty program.

## Result

**+81% account icon clicks**

- Account icon clicks: +81%.
- Sign-up button clicks: +31%.
- 27% of visitors who clicked went on to sign in or create an account.
- These are engagement and sign-up numbers. No effect on sales or revenue was reported.

## Control

The standard site header showed a plain account icon with no notification.

## Variant

A small red dot pulsed next to the account icon. Only desktop visitors who were not logged in saw it, on every page with the main navigation bar.

## Why it likely won (our reading)

- A red dot reads as 'something new for you', which sparks curiosity.
- Motion draws the eye in a calm, minimal header without adding text or banners.
- The test ran just before a loyalty program launch, so there may have been a real reason for shoppers to sign in.

## Caveats

Results cover clicks and sign-ups, not purchases. No sample size, duration or confidence level was shared.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we add a small pulsing dot next to the account icon for logged-out visitors, then more of them will sign in or register because the dot draws attention and suggests there is something waiting for them.
- Primary metric: Account sign-ins and registrations per logged-out visitor
- Guardrail: Conversion rate
- Guardrail: Revenue per visitor
- Guardrail: Bounce rate
- Who should test it: Retailers that gain a lot from logged-in shoppers, such as those with loyalty programs or personalized offers. Be careful if there is nothing new behind the dot: visitors may feel tricked, and repeat visitors may learn to ignore it.

---

Credit: David Jones ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/david-jones-account-icon-pulsing-red-dot/).
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.