New theme with a BOGO offer vs old theme: +44.54% conversion
Test run byKasper DolkMaison Commerce
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsA new Shopify theme with a buy-one-get-one offer lifted conversion rate by 44.54% over the old theme in Kasper Dolk's test for a fashion brand. Revenue per visitor rose 41.85% and profit per visitor rose 44.19%. Because the theme and the offer changed together, the test cannot say which one drove the gain.
- Conversion rate: +44.54% (2.44% to 3.53%), with a 99.7% probability of beating the old theme. The range was +11% to +89%.
- Revenue per visitor: +41.85% (£1.08 to £1.54). Range: -2% to +106%.
- Profit per visitor: +44.19% (£0.85 to £1.23). This was the primary metric, so the BOGO offer did not eat the gain.
- The tool estimated about 782 extra orders a month, and the post puts the gain at over $518,000 a year.
- A third arm, labelled 'New Them...' (cut off), did much worse than the old theme: 0.97% conversion and £0.43 per visitor. Its setup was not explained.
The change
Site-wide new theme plus a BOGO offer; real layout and offer placement were not shown.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The fashion brand's old Shopify theme.
Variant
A new Shopify theme, labelled 'New theme (BOGO)', which ran with a buy-one-get-one offer. The design and offer details were not shown.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- a BOGO offer is a strong reason to buy now, and in fashion it suits shoppers buying more than one item.
- the new theme may have improved speed or layout, but the test cannot separate that from the offer.
- the poor third arm suggests the new theme alone was not the winner, though its exact setup is unknown.
Caveats: The theme and offer changed at the same time, so the effect of each is unknown. Sample size and test length were not shared, and only one fashion store was tested.
Who ran it
Kasper Dolk (@kasper_dolk) shared this test on X. The numbers and screenshots are theirs.
View the original post on X
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we launch our new theme together with a buy-one-get-one offer, then more visitors will buy because the offer gives a clear reason to order now.
- Primary metric
- Profit per visitor
- Guardrails
- Gross margin per order
- Return rate
- Average order value
- Who should test it
- Fashion and apparel stores with margins that can carry a BOGO offer, especially during a redesign. To learn what works, test the theme and the offer as separate arms.
Questions
Does a new Shopify theme increase conversion rate?
It can, but this test cannot isolate the theme. The new theme ran with a BOGO offer, and that combination lifted conversion by 44.54%.
Do BOGO offers hurt profit?
Not in this test. Profit per visitor rose 44.19%, from £0.85 to £1.23.
How should I A/B test a store redesign?
Run the new theme as a split test against the old one, as Kasper Dolk did. To know what drove the result, test the theme and any new offer in separate arms.
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