Coupon code reminder at Black Friday checkout: +3.2% profit/session
Test run byVisuallyTesting and CRO tool
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsFresh Clean Threads reminded shoppers of their 25% Black Friday code at checkout, and profit per session rose 3.2%.
Conversion rate went up 7.5% while average order value fell 2.8%.
Visually ran the test for the apparel brand during Black Friday 2024 and published it as a Visually case study.
- Profit per session: +3.2%, the measure the team used to pick the winner.
- Conversion rate: +7.5%, as more shoppers finished their order.
- Average order value: -2.8%, a negative result, since more orders went through with the discount applied.
- Sample size, test length and statistical confidence were not shared.
The change
Checkout adds a reminder that the shopper's sale code applies.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
During the 25% off sitewide Black Friday sale, checkout did not remind shoppers of the code they could use.
Variant
Checkout reminded shoppers that they were eligible for the coupon code.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Shoppers who forget a code, or have to go and find it, may leave checkout. The reminder removes that step.
- Shoppers who would have paid full price got the discount too, which likely explains the lower order value.
- The extra orders more than made up for the lost order value, so profit per session still went up.
Caveats: The test ran during a Black Friday sale, so the result may not hold outside a big promotion. This comes from a testing vendor's own case study. Sample size and statistical significance were not shared.
Who ran it
Visually ran this test for Fresh Clean Threads and published the results (Visually case study). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Visually →
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we remind shoppers of their eligible sale code at checkout, then profit per session will rise because more shoppers will complete their order, even if some who would have paid full price use the code.
- Primary metric
- Profit per session
- Guardrails
- Average order value
- Conversion rate
- Discount rate per order
- Who should test it
- Stores running a sitewide code-based promotion where shoppers have to enter the code themselves. It probably won't help if the discount is already applied automatically, or if margins are too thin to give the code to everyone.
Questions
Should I remind shoppers of a coupon code at checkout?
During a big sale it can pay off.
Fresh Clean Threads lost 2.8% in order value but gained 7.5% in conversion, for 3.2% more profit per session.
Why judge a coupon test on profit instead of conversion rate?
A coupon reminder almost always lifts conversion but lowers what each order brings in.
Profit per session shows whether the extra orders cover the discount you give away.
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