Always-visible mobile search bar: +19.62% conversion rate
Test run byBlend CommerceCRO agency
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsReplacing a mobile search icon with an always-visible search bar lifted conversion rate by 19.62% for apparel store Fame on Central.
Blend Commerce ran this one-week A/B test in Intelligems on mobile, at about 97% significance. Revenue per visitor rose 31.30%.
- Conversion rate: +19.62%. This was the primary metric.
- Revenue per visitor: +31.30% and checkout-begin rate: +10.50%.
- Collection-page views fell 1.80%. This suggests some shoppers used search to skip browsing and go straight to products.
- About 97% significance, but after only one week.
The change
The mobile search icon becomes a search bar that is always visible.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The mobile header hid site search behind a magnifying-glass icon, so shoppers needed an extra tap to start searching.
Variant
A search field was always visible in the mobile header, including the sticky header, and the old icon was removed.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Removing one tap makes search easier for shoppers who already know what they want.
- A visible field acts as a prompt. Some shoppers who would not look for an icon will type into a box in front of them.
- Search took shoppers straight to products, which shortened the path to checkout.
Caveats: The test ran one week, shorter than the agency's usual two-week minimum, so weekly patterns may be missed. The client paused it once results were shared, so there is no long-term data.
Who ran it
Blend Commerce ran this test for Fame on Central and published the results (Blend Commerce A/B test). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Blend Commerce →
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we show an open search field in the mobile header instead of an icon, then conversion rate will rise because shoppers can reach products in fewer steps.
- Primary metric
- Conversion rate
- Guardrails
- Revenue per visitor
- Collection-page views
- Search exits with no results
- Who should test it
- Mobile-heavy stores with large catalogues and decent site search. If your catalogue is small or your search results are poor, a visible bar may not help.
Questions
Should mobile search be an icon or a full bar?
Several tests point to a full bar. Here it lifted conversion rate by 19.62%, though the test was short.
Does a visible search bar work with a sticky header?
Yes, it can. Fame on Central kept the bar visible in the sticky header too, so check contrast and spacing in both states.
How long should a search bar test run?
At least two weeks, so weekday and weekend shoppers are both covered. This one ran a single week.
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