# Swatch navigation test at The Shade Store: about -82%, stopped

- Outcome: Lost
- Page type: Navigation & menu (Ecommerce)
- Elements: Navigation & mega menus
- Test run by: [Surefoot](https://liftarchive.com/practitioners/surefoot/)
- Commentary by: LiftArchive (our analysis, not theirs)
- Original source: https://surefoot.me/case-studies/the-shade-store
- Page: https://liftarchive.com/test/shade-store-swatch-nav-test-stopped/

A change to The Shade Store's swatch navigation cut orders of its most popular swatches by roughly 82%, so the test was stopped early. Surefoot ran this A/B test for the custom window-treatment brand. Surefoot counted the loss it avoided as part of the program's results.

## Result

**about -82%, stopped**

- Most-popular-swatch orders: about -82%. This is a clear loss.
- The test was stopped early once the drop showed up, so the variant never went live.
- Effects on other lead types were not shared.

## Control

The original swatch navigation.

## Variant

A changed swatch navigation. The case study does not say what changed.

## Why it likely lost (our reading)

- Swatch orders are a key step for a custom product. Shoppers want to see and touch fabric before they commit.
- If the new navigation made the popular swatches harder to find, fewer people would order them.
- Without details of the change, these reasons are our guess, not something the source states.

## Caveats

The change is not described, and sample size and duration were not shared. The test was stopped early, so the exact size of the drop is rough.

## How to run this test

- Hypothesis: If we change how shoppers browse swatches, then swatch orders will rise because the right fabrics are easier to find.
- Primary metric: Swatch orders, split by popular and other swatches
- Guardrail: Consultation requests
- Guardrail: Total lead submissions
- Guardrail: Swatch page exits
- Who should test it: Brands that send samples or swatches before a big purchase. Set a stop rule in advance so a test that hurts a high-value lead type can be ended quickly.

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Credit: Surefoot ran this test and owns the result. Summary and commentary by LiftArchive (https://liftarchive.com/test/shade-store-swatch-nav-test-stopped/).
Usage: Free to use, quote and build on, with credit and a link: name the practitioner or organization that ran the test and link to its LiftArchive page. The results belong to the practitioners who ran and shared them; the summaries and commentary are LiftArchive's.