Store-connect tooltip and nudge flows: +10% flow conversion
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsPrintify added a tooltip and four contextual flows nudging new merchants to connect a sales channel store, and flow conversion rose 10%.
Printify's product marketing team ran the test, and it was published as an Appcues customer story.
New sign-ups were split 50/50, and the team reports the treatment group beat control on every key metric they checked.
- Flow conversion: up 10%, as reported by Appcues.
- Store connections and first purchases from connected stores both rose, but no figures were given.
- The team says the exposed group beat control on every key metric they compared in Heap.
- No sample sizes, duration or significance levels were shared.
The change
A tooltip and contextual flows nudge new merchants to connect a sales channel store.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
New sign-ups got no extra guidance on connecting a sales channel store such as Etsy or Shopify, even though data showed this was the key activation step.
Variant
A single tooltip helped users who had not yet connected a store, opening with information instead of interrupting. Four more flows then nudged merchants to connect at moments in their journey when it was relevant.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- The team first used data to find which early action predicted long-term success, then focused all the nudges on it.
- Session recordings showed people stalling on the page for lack of context, which a tooltip addresses directly.
- Leading with useful information rather than an interruption likely felt like help, not a pop-up.
- Timing the extra flows to when a store connection made sense kept them relevant.
Caveats: The 10% is flow conversion, not store connections, and the story gives no number for the store-connection lift. Vendor-published, with no sample size or duration.
Who ran it
Printify ran this test and published the results (Appcues customer story). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Printify →
How to run this test on your site
- Hypothesis
- If we show new users a tooltip and timely nudges toward the one action that predicts long-term success, then more will complete it because they get context right when they stall.
- Primary metric
- Share of new sign-ups who complete the key activation action
- Guardrails
- Flow dismissal rate
- Downstream conversion (for example, first order or first payment)
- Support tickets
- Who should test it
- Platforms where one integration or connection unlocks value, such as e-commerce tools or marketplaces. Do the data work first; nudging toward the wrong action will not help.
Questions
How do I find my product's activation moment?
Look for early actions that users who stay long term take much more often, ideally within a set time after sign-up.
Printify found connecting a store was that action.
How do I A/B test in-app onboarding flows?
Randomly hold back a share of new users from seeing the flow and tag each user by group in your analytics tool.
Then compare activation and later metrics between groups.
Should a nudge interrupt the user?
Printify found opening with helpful information worked better than an interruption.
Contextual, low-friction prompts tend to be read rather than dismissed.