Bestsellers instead of featured picks for new visitors: +23.01% CTR
Test run byOptimizelyTesting and CRO tool
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsShowing new visitors bestseller recommendations instead of featured products lifted click-through to product pages by 23.01%.
Optimizely ran this test for an online retailer and published it as an Optimizely Field Notes use case.
Both versions were static lists, so the only difference was which products were shown.
- +23.01% click-through to product pages among new visitors.
- No figures for add to cart, orders or revenue were shared.
The change
New visitors see bestsellers in place of featured products.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
New visitors saw a static set of featured product recommendations on the homepage.
Variant
New visitors saw a static set of bestseller recommendations instead.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Bestsellers carry built-in social proof. Strangers to the brand can lean on what others bought.
- New visitors have no history to personalize from, so popular items are a safe bet.
- Featured items reflect what the store wants to push, which may not match what shoppers want.
Caveats: Vendor-reported and anonymized, with no sample size, duration or confidence level shared. Only click-through was reported.
Who ran it
Optimizely ran this test for an online retailer (Optimizely customer) and published the results (Optimizely Field Notes use case). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Optimizely →
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we show new visitors bestsellers instead of featured products, then more will click into products because popular items signal what others trust.
- Primary metric
- Click-through rate to product pages (new visitors)
- Guardrails
- Add-to-cart rate
- Revenue per visitor
- Who should test it
- Stores with clear bestsellers and lots of first-time traffic. If your bestsellers are low-margin or often out of stock, watch revenue closely.
Questions
Should the homepage show bestsellers or featured products?
For new visitors in this test, bestsellers won on clicks by 23%.
Returning visitors may respond better to personalized picks.
Why do bestsellers work for new visitors?
They show what other shoppers chose, which helps people who don't know the brand yet.
It is a simple form of social proof.
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