# Subcategory pills on the homepage: +5.66% conversion rate

- Outcome: Won
- Page type: Homepage (Ecommerce)
- Elements: Navigation & mega menus, Hero & above-the-fold section
- Test run by: [Blend Commerce](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/blend-commerce/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://blendcommerce.com/blogs/ab-tests-shopify/homepage-subcategory-pills-conversion-rate
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/fame-homepage-subcategory-pills/

Adding a carousel of subcategory pill links to the homepage lifted conversion rate by 5.66% for apparel brand Fame. Blend Commerce ran this A/B test, and revenue per visitor rose 8.36%. The test ran one week and reached about 70% confidence, so the agency treats it as directional.

## Result

**+5.66% conversion rate**

- Conversion rate: +5.66%.
- Revenue per visitor: +8.36%.
- Average order value: +2.55%.
- Collection page views rose 1.33% and add-to-cart rate rose 1%. Product page views did not change.
- The gain was stronger on desktop. Mobile showed no harm.

## Control

The homepage led with a large video and gave shoppers few visible routes into product collections.

## Variant

A pill-style carousel of subcategory links, starting with New Arrivals and ending with Sale, was added. It sat above the hero on mobile and below it on desktop.

## Why it likely won (our reading)

- The pills gave shoppers direct routes into collections like Denim, Dresses and Tops from the first screen.
- On desktop, they added a second way to browse besides the main menu.
- Putting New Arrivals first and Sale last may have nudged shoppers toward full-price items.

## Caveats

The test ran for one week and reached about 70% confidence, well below the usual threshold. Sample size was not shared.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we add subcategory pill links near the homepage hero, then conversion will rise because shoppers reach relevant collections with less effort.
- Primary metric: Conversion rate
- Guardrail: Revenue per visitor
- Guardrail: Average order value
- Guardrail: Sale collection share of orders
- Who should test it: Stores with several clear categories and a homepage built around a big image or video. If your homepage already links clearly to collections, expect a smaller effect.

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Credit: Blend Commerce ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/fame-homepage-subcategory-pills/).
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.