Conversion Optimization
Why Is Your Conversion Rate Low: Possible Causes + Solutions
April 17, 2025
If you've been researching "why is my conversion rate so low" - you are already ahead of 90% of store owners.
But what you’ve really got to do is step back and assess the most critical touchpoints to see the gaps—nd then optimize them.
While a slow loading speed and lack of mobile optimization are common causes of falling conversion rates, there are still other less-obvious factors that you need to look into.
We’ll examine 29 of these, which we’ve picked from across the industries our clients come from.
1. Homepage has high bounce rate
2. No clearly differentiated branding
4. Slow product discovery causing drop-offs
5. Not enough product guidance
6. Low number of returning customers
9. Sending high intent shoppers to the wrong pages
14. No personalized customer service
17. Irrelevant / uninspiring product bundles
21. Poor SEO & site visibility
22. Lack of optimization for new traffic sources
25. Checking reviews feels like a task
29. Tracking shows wrong results
Reasons for Low Conversion Rate in eCommerce
1. Homepage has high bounce rate
Clumsy navigation, lack of content hierarchy and not enough brand information can come together to increase your homepage bounce rate.
And this means: shoppers aren’t finding the impetus to visit other pages on your eCommerce store.
How to fix low conversion rates on the homepage:
✔ Make your search function distinct—make sure it’s not hidden away behind a symbol and offer auto-suggestions when someone starts typing—consider showing related categories & subcategories along with search results and add a list of trending searches to enable first-time visitors.
✔ Feature social proof in a relevant way—instead of showing random reviews in a horizontal slab, try product recommendations showcasing one review snippet. This makes more potential customers stop and take note of both the products and their reviews.
Beardbrand clearly distinguishes how customers would benefit if they were to shop, resolving the low conversion rate challenge:
2. No clearly differentiated branding
Have you noticed stores that rely heavily on discounts and have no distinctive messaging at a brand-level or even what sets their products apart?
These stores typically suffer a low conversion rate because they lack a differentiated UVP.
How to fix low website conversions from a lacking value prop:
✔ Reposition brand based on pain points solved—check reviews, queries and social media comments to pick on patterns around the ways customers are saying they’re experiencing relief, change or simply ease
✔ Focus on creating a powerful origin story—the best eCommerce brands have weathered low conversion rates by coming up with origin stories that strike a chord and signal to shoppers why they can depend on the brand without a doubt
A case in point is perfume brand Dossier, which features a timeline in their store for shoppers to know their origin story:
3. Complicated return policy
Low conversion rates often result from brands earning the reputation of “tricky” returns.
For example, if a brand states different return windows for products in their store.
Or demands every aspect of the original packaging be in place and not just critical items like the tag.
How to improve website conversion rate with simple returns:
✔ Offer pre-paid return labels—this naturally takes away worries around additional shipping costs that shoppers may have to bear themselves, creating a different kind of assurance around purchases
✔ Be clear when you extend the returns window—during certain phases of the year (like BFCM or even Christmas), shoppers expect brands to feature extended returns because gift-giving is higher, so you’ll be missing out on conversions if you don’t highlight this explicitly across the site
4. Slow product discovery causing drop-offs
Many eCommerce businesses that are intent on changing their low conversion rate scenario forget to look at time to product discovery as a crucial metric.
But in our audits, we’ve noticed time and again that stores less focused on product discovery end up seeing lower conversion rates.
How to fix conversion rate through enhanced product discovery:
✔ Optimize your customer review sections—at the back-end, ask specific questions to get more detailed reviews, and at the front-end, tag your “most helpful” reviews first in the list
✔ Trigger image-based search suggestions—since the human brain can process images in as little as 13 milliseconds, featuring search results that carry images are likely to create faster time to product
eCommerce eyewear brand Pair Eyewear knows that and features image-based suggestions that are also aptly labeled for easier processing:
Further Reading: 33 Scientific Ways To Improve eCommerce Product Discovery
5. Not enough product guidance
It’s easy to think product guidance is just about well-optimized product descriptions, and ta-da! your low conversion rate problems will be solved!
It just so happens that product guidance is a lot more complicated and needs to reflect across key touchpoints through your eCommerce store.
How to fix conversion rate dropping from poor product content:
✔ Introduce short descriptors for recommendations—use no more than 6 to 7 words to bring out the chief function of each product, no matter where you’re showcasing them
✔ Feature a way to “compare” products—this is critical if you have many products under several sub-categories and multiple mini ustomer segments to target for each, where an exhaustive “compare” function can help shoppers find the right product(s).
Pet brand Maev features “compare” as a functionality in their main navigation, which when clicked leads shoppers to a page where they can compare ingredients and also find the right recommendations:
6. Low number of returning customers
Right from technical difficulties in navigation to poor UX in terms of customer service, eCommerce brands see low numbers of returning customers for different reasons.
But they all point at one thing: a low conversion rate.
How to fix conversion rate dropping with more repeat customers:
✔ Make post-purchase a joyride—right from providing fulfilment updates through email to seeking feedback, shoppers are always looking for cues that tell them a brand can be trusted again and again
✔ More options around pricing & payments—if you’ve been seeing conversion rates dropping across segments, the way forward could be to offer more price-quantity choices across product pages and bringing in more installment payment options at checkout
7. Hidden costs at checkout
“We saw many cart page drop-offs. Research showed that our shoppers were hesitant to buy due to unclear shipping costs at checkout. After showing shipping estimators earlier in the journey, we saw a significant reduction in cart abandonment.” - Zach Dannett, Co-founder, Tumble Living
Research has proven that among the topmost reasons for shopper frustration, is the lack of knowledge about total cost—so no cost breakdown until checkout is a bad idea!
How to fix decreased website conversion rates through cost transparency
We uncovered unclear shipping costs at checkout. We moved shipping estimators earlier in the journey and saw reduced cart abandonment. - Emma Zerner, Co-founder & Content Strategist, Icecartel
✔ Animate price differences between variants—use features like boxes and slide-in features to highlight how the difference in features is contributing to a higher overall cost
✔ Mention flat shipping rate & free shipping threshold clearly—feature these snippets of info together across the website, including on the hello bar, the category page banner and around the primary CTA on product pages
Further Reading: How do I increase my website’s checkout rate? (26 proven ideas)
8. Not easy to checkout
Cart abandonment is often the common cause for conversion rate dropping.
But abandonment doesn’t just occur after a shopper sees their costs add up in the mini cart—even for those who’re confident about completing a checkout, the flow on the last page / sections can turn them off.
How to fix low conversion rates through a better checkout flow:
✔ Increase the number of checkout options—starting from the number of payment options (including easy ones like split payments) to what you offer in lieu of account creation - ensure you offer a social login, an OTP-led guest checkout option as well as a couple of express checkout methods.
✔ Make it easy to save the cart—make the wishlisting sign or microcopy be present on the checkout page so that you can send really good abandoned cart emails later - also consider featuring a “save for later” pop-up when people try to leave from the checkout page.
Skincare brand Blume highlights one each of a conventionally-accepted payment method (Paypal,) an express method (ShopPay) and a modern debit method (Catch):
9. Sending high intent shoppers to the wrong pages
Recently, while auditing a new client’s communication assets, we figured many of their recommendation emails made visitors land up on generic category pages.
If someone is clicking through a recommendation, to see offer/ description / payment methods / social proof, they’re truly interested—but if you’re confusing them by landing them in a sea of products instead of a targeted product page, your conversions will be low.
How to fix low conversions from high intent shoppers:
✔ Fix social media landing pages—run an audit on your most popular product posts and current ads to find out if when they’re clicked, they actually take the shopper to the right page
✔ Fix search algorithm & tagging—bring up results closer to what shoppers have repeatedly searched / browsed, and also ensure proper tagging from filters & collections so that the right products appear for exploration
10. Confusing product pages
A confusing product page could mean your visitors aren’t able to make sense of product descriptions, feeling the lack of social proof, feeling unclear about sizing or variants or not knowing what a package contains.
How to fix decreased conversion rates on product page:
To improve your low conversion rate, you’ll have to look at the following more closely than other aspects:
✔ Make a checklist of common customer objections—ask what they’d like to know about your brand, sizing, pricing, subscription options, applicable BNPL payments, reviews, how to use your product etc. If you start with a checklist, the better are your chances of creating more well-rounded product descriptions.
✔ Create product information hierarchy—the more logical the flow of information from the top, the likelier it is for potential shoppers to stick around and consider buying:
- Product name
- Price (& discount if applicable)
- Key takeaways (like free shipping, organic ingredients etc.)
- Primary CTA (followed by a one-click secondary CTA if needed)
- Specifications / features / benefits
- How to Use / Care
- Product recommendations
- Review Snapshot (followed by review section)
- Social wall
- Footer
11. Too many product options
First-time visitors want a little bit of everything: options to choose from and personalization that can help them narrow down the choices.
But if you load them just with endless product options, choice paralysis will get the better of them.
How to fix decreased conversion rates by optimizing recommendations:
✔ Highlight bestsellers differently—this is true even if you have a separate section reserved for bestsellers on your homepage - consider offering a one-word callout, attaching a certification symbol or even featuring something relatable like “most loved.”
✔ Offer social proof on the recommendations you’d like them to consider more—this works really well because these recommendations come vouched for, increasing their chances of being added to cart - this is exactly what cowboy boots brand Tecovas does (and for better effect, doesn’t even reveal the product pictures):
12. Unconvincing copywriting
Given that people don’t read a lot of things, you’ll have to be brief yet detailed, simple yet striking to resolve a conversion rate dropping scenario.
But if you have copywriting that doesn’t speak to different customer segments or uses vague language to describe benefits, then you have a problem.
How to fix low conversion rates through eCommerce copywriting:
✔ Back up your words with facts—pack in research from your own studies, data mining or even clinical trials (taking a stand on your brand vision, the impact you’re creating environmentally, or the effects existing customers have seen is always a good idea).
✔ Write in language that resonates—when skimming, people have little ability to break down complex ideas, hard words, long sentences, so please do what Happy Socks does:
Further Reading: eCommerce copywriting: 20 inspiring examples from the US
13. Too many pop-ups
Now while intelligently designed exit intent pop-ups can actually be conversion drivers, populating your whole site with multiple trigger pop-up events will just annoy customers.
How to fix low conversion rates by optimizing pop-ups:
✔ Employ a lightbox popup that vanishes upon scrolling—this is helpful because it dims the background but does not make the shopper feel like they’ve lost touch with their original experience, and a single scroll past the pop-up makes it vanish!
✔ Limit the overall pop-up experience to maximum 2—in a single browsing experience, we’ve noticed more bounce-offs when visitors are met with more than 2 pop-ups - segment your audiences carefully and show them only the two most critical messages they need to see.
Further Reading: Exit-Intent Pop-Ups: overcoming common mistakes + 20 brilliant examples
14. No personalized customer service
93% of shoppers say they will buy again from a brand that has enabled a positive customer service experience for them—so you can imagine how low conversion rates can be a result of this feature not working as it should!
How to fix sudden conversion rate drop through customer service:
✔ Feature a sticky personalized “help you choose” button—this naturally makes shoppers want to click after which they need to see clear steps on what to do - whether it is to take a quiz or directly enter a chat with a support staff
✔ Introduce a search function within the help center—instead of having your shoppers scroll to find FAQ, let them do the search and find results like they would if they were looking for products—Bed, Bath & Beyond applies this to make personalized support more seamless:
15. Weak mobile CTAs
“We observed that a significant portion of our traffic came from mobile devices. Without a seamless mobile shopping experience, you risk losing a substantial number of potential sales. It's essential to ensure that your site is responsive, loads quickly, and is easy to navigate on mobile devices.” - Chris Cho, Founder, DroneSourced
Sometimes, the challenge is with CTA’s – they may not look clickable, they may be difficult to tap and go to the next level of action or they may be positioned in a way that other non-targeted areas also get clicked.
How to fix low website conversion rate through optimized CTAs:
✔ Center-align your CTAs and keep them at the bottom of a scroll—ensure your call-to-action doesn’t get hidden after one full scroll as this defeats the purpose.
✔ Use the Google Mobile-Friendly Test Tool to gather important data:
→ if your site is mobile-friendly
→ how your site looks on mobile devices
→ if there are any mobile usability issues
16. Long shipping times
74% of shoppers believe that shipping is the main driver to a great shopping experience.
Extended or unclear shipping and delivery times are major reasons for low conversion rate.
How to fix low conversion rates by optimizing eCommerce shipping:
✔ Introduce express shipping at extra charges—this is best combined with a free 2 or 3 standard shipping formula that you clearly outline - Amazon has been using this approach for a while, constantly improving conversion rates in the process
✔ Highlight faster shipping on your membership plan—this can be a gamechanger especially if you talk about cheaper expedited options like Core does - a win-win for you to get more conversions while getting more sign-ups for your loyalty program as well:
Further Reading: 25 Proven Ways To Reduce eCommerce Shipping Costs
17. Irrelevant / uninspiring product bundles
Your target audience seems to be exploring your product bundling options, but few or none are actually taking them home.
They may not be finding relatability between the main product and the others you’re upselling or cross-selling, leading to an unsatisfactory eCommerce conversion rate.
How to fix low conversion rates through product bundling:
✔ Make it easy to “build your own bundle”—and gamify the experience just enough to shift the control into a shopper’s hands (let them choose from multiple quantity options, mark the concern they’re looking to solve and make it easy to add variants / flavors / colors).
✔ Make bundles across your site editable—this is the only way you won’t lose out on conversions from those who may want to add products independently from your bundles (think: individual products in a bundle are actually recommendations) - take a look at how Aesop achieves this:
18. Generic email campaigns
While generic email campaigns may convey discounts, benefits etc. they typically don’t address nuances from a customer journey, which can ultimately contribute to people buying more.
How to fix low conversion rates through optimized email campaigns:
✔ Don't send more than 2 emails each week, treat email as a long term game—many eCommerce businesses send more than 4 emails per week and that just means one thing: more unopened emails than ever!
✔ Create brand recall through consistent storytelling—this is important in developing a strong, long-term emotional connection with subscribers, who in a way, have to remember your brand among the hundreds they subscribe to.
One eCommerce brand that creates compelling drip email campaigns is Thrive Market—across emails they lead with member benefits and brand vision creating a cohesive narrative:
19. Lack of segmentation
A number of indicators could prove that your site has low segmentation, which in turn is leading to low conversion rates.
These include static content across ad landing pages, product recommendations that don’t change based on user behavior and offers that stay the same across segments.
How to fix online conversion rate from poor customer segmentation:
✔ Study intent signals carefully—these include product page views, search queries across products & categories as well as the time a shopper spends on specific categories
✔ Set pricing for micro-cohorts—this is a way to segment certain segments of your shopper population on super-specific data based on (for example) abandonment patterns and device usage, and then apply pricing & discounting on them accordingly
Further Reading: eCommerce Customer Segmentation: 10 critical mistakes businesses make
20. Poor targeting
Here’s something that isn't apparent: most websites are selling to an organic audience, but those people aren’t the ones buying from them.
How to fix low conversion rates by improving targeting:
✔ Deepen customer research & create nuanced personas—study past buying behavior, understand customer analytics, and follow customers to see where they come from, what they do, and what sort of buying choices they make
✔ Strategize your paid ads better—beyond spending thousands of dollars on paid ads, you’ll have to get the bang out of the buck - and this is only possible when your ads speak to high-intent users (create trust in your meta descriptions, clarify what your brand stands for and don’t keep harping only on sales).
We recommend you read: Convert More Paid Traffic—9 Strategies That Always Work (eCommerce)
21. Poor SEO & site visibility
If your keywords & content haven’t been updated for a while, this can lead to unsatisfactory conversion rates.
Amongst clients, we’ve also noticed not including high-intent keywords in site content having a bearing on conversion rate.
How to fix low website conversion rates through an SEO strategy:
✔ Make your navigation structure exemplary—clear categories & sub-categories, including actions that shoppers like to make like gifting or creating a bundle, make it easy to sort & apply filters on the category pages and make all of this super responsive for mobile.
✔ Don’t forget to use schema markups—since these markups organize your website data coherently for search engines to pick up your prices / discounts, quality of reviews, special product drops etc. you wouldn’t want to skip on them.
Further Reading: eCommerce migration: 9 challenges for online stores (2024)
22. Lack of optimization for new traffic sources
When eCommerce businesses find a sudden drop in conversion rate, the most obvious place they begin to find fault in is the website.
But in-depth audits have proven to us that sometimes, the fault lies with how these businesses are optimizing their traffic sources, especially the newer ones.
How to fix bad conversion rate from lack of traffic optimization:
✔ Generate more platform-specific content—after you’ve figured which platforms your new visitors are spending time on, you can check on the best practices for each of the platforms to create more targeted content
✔ Target “product amplifiers” through your content—look for collaborators and micro-influencers for these emerging platforms where traffic is spiking, and if you don’t have the budget, identify high-value customers here who can spread the word on your behalf in exchange for discounts & gifts at regular intervals
23. “0 search results”
80% of shoppers will gladly drop off from a brand site if they find the search function to be unsatisfactory.
Similarly, those who use a site’s search are 2x to 3x more likely to convert.
How to fix low website conversion rates through search results:
✔ Keep updating your synonym library—as your products grow and market reach increases, your synonym library needs to reflect real-time lingo your widening audiences use, so that you can show related results even if the search term doesn’t exactly match a product name or type.
✔ Display results as per browsing behavior—even if your search engine can’t identify a unique phrase, let that be an opportunity for you to show recommendations close to what the shopper has been browsing or search for through paid ads.
This is what eCommerce brand Free People does when there are no results:
24. Slow load times
Research shows that:
- A load time of 0–4 seconds was ideal for conversion rates
- The first 5 seconds were the most crucial and had the highest impact on web conversion rates
- For every additional load time—between 0–5 seconds—the conversion rate drops at an average of 4.42%
How to fix decreased conversion rates by optimizing website speed:
✔ Optimize product listing pages—from the way you name your images to the way you compress your image files and listing your bestsellers first and foremost, optimized category pages typically end up reducing loading speed.
✔ Update your themes & plugins—weed out plug-ins you aren’t using anymore and ensure you run an audit on any third-party themes you may be employing - because they typically come with extra features, they tend to slow your website down.
Further Reading: Smart Ways To Speed Up Your eCommerce Store (Top 5 Platforms Covered)
25. Checking reviews feels like a task
When shoppers scour through reviews to decide on a purchase, they’re looking for great reasons to buy or concerning reasons not to.
But if they have no way to quickly glance through your reviews, that may prevent them from buying.
How to fix low website conversion rates by optimizing reviews:
✔ Offer a filtering option with the most relevant markers—think: rating, size, activity, most votes, least votes, with pictures / videos etc. - markers help shoppers sort reviews more quickly and with less friction.
✔ Feature a “review snapshot” across product pages—a snapshot is like a summary that shows your differently rated reviews as spectrums and when one rating is clicked on, a shopper is able to view all reviews that carry that rating!
26. Abrupt website redesigns
Since shoppers recognize your store through certain elements such as your website color scheme or brand models, sudden website redesigns can challenge that familiarity and create low website conversions.
How to fix low conversion rates through website redesign:
✔ Announce any changes or rebranding through an email series / on social media—this sort of transparency may seem overwhelming at the outset but in the long run, you’ll ensure shoppers aren’t confused or move on to other brands because their experience has changed.
✔ Highlight features so shoppers to navigate new features - here’s what BioClarity did when they started prioritizing size choices as a redesign motif:
27. Broken links and pages
It’s always disappointing when a shopper lands on a 404 page or can’t click on an element such as a size button or CTA.
Whether it’s broken links, pages or elements, fixing is a must when it comes to URL changes, page deletion or even server problems.
How to fix low website conversion rates by optimizing links & elements :
✔ Display micro copies for unavailable elements—this is especially helpful for product pages where you don’t want shoppers to hit add to cart only to discover their cart is not updating or the product is out of stock.
✔ Use the opportunity to highlight what’s trending—when you do this with relatable copy plus recommendations that closely match the visitor’s preference, you increase the chances of exploration & conversion, just like eBay does:
28. Not enough testing
Through continuous A/B testing, we found that many shoppers found our checkout process complicated. A few tweaks like reducing the number of checkout steps resulted in a 15% increase in our conversion rate! - Matt Little, Founder, Festoon House
How to fix low website conversion rates through A/B testing:
✔ Focus on the most crucial elements—despite experts claiming a bunch of things, A/B tests need to prioritize rather than analyze a bunch of things - typically, the most critical elements include CTAs, hero headers, filters / sorters, recommendations and email subject lines.
✔ Specify your goals clearly—this just helps in tracking your test results better - so aim for clarity rather than generalization (for example, if you’re comparing two filtering options, specifying that the goal is to increase micro-conversions may be a good idea.)
29. Tracking shows wrong results
Last but not the least, you might just be maintaining a steady conversion rate.
But the way your tracking results are showing up, is featuring discrepancies that you don’t have a clue about.
How to fix low website conversion rates through better website tracking:
✔ Maintain a single GA4 code—and run a quick check on your parameters to see if the values match those that are on your eCommerce platform settings.
✔ Consider data errors—if your shoppers are bookmarking certain pages and reloading the pages, the same data gets sent to GA4 as many times that happens - to avoid this, create a separate field to flag down duplicate data / transaction records.
Top 10 Things to Check When Your eCommerce Website Is Not Converting
If your eCommerce website is not converting, something’s off.
And it might not be just one thing — it could be a combo of small issues piling up.
Let’s break down the top 10 things to check when your eCommerce website is not converting, with real examples to help you spot the problems.
1. Is your loading time more than 3 seconds?
If your eCommerce website is not converting, check your load speed.
Most shoppers won’t wait longer than 3 seconds, especially on mobile.
Example: A customer clicks your Instagram ad for “Minimalist Gold Earrings.” The site takes 6 seconds to load. They hit back before they even see your homepage. You just lost a sale before the game even started.
2. Does your navigation feel like a maze?
If your menu structure is confusing or overcrowded, shoppers won’t bother exploring.
A messy nav is one of the top reasons your eCommerce website is not converting, because people can’t find what they came for.
Example: A customer looking for “Vegan Leather Bags” ends up in a category called “Essentials.” They have to click five times to find the bag section. That’s five chances to leave.
3. 3. Is your product page converting less than 4%?
When your eCommerce website is not converting, skim your product pages.
Do they really sell the item? Or just list it?
Example: A listing for a handcrafted ceramic mug only has one dimly lit photo and says: “White mug. Handmade.” No dimensions, no story, no close-ups, no size comparison, nothing to help a buyer feel confident. If they can’t imagine owning it, they won’t buy it.
4. Are you building enough trust?
If your eCommerce website is not converting, check what trust signals are missing. Online shoppers are cautious, especially with lesser-known brands.
Example: A new customer lands on your checkout page and sees no lock icon, no SSL certificate, no recognizable payment options, and no reviews. That gut feeling of “maybe this is a scam” kicks in, and they close the tab.
5. Is your mobile conversion rate stuck at 1.5%?
A huge reason your eCommerce website is not converting could be a poor mobile experience.
Over 60% of shopping happens on phones now.
Example: On desktop, your store looks amazing. But on mobile, the fonts are tiny, buttons are hard to tap, and the checkout form glitches halfway through. A customer trying to buy a $90 skincare set just gives up.
6. Does your checkout process take more than 60 seconds?
Complex, multi-step checkouts are one of the biggest conversion killers.
If your eCommerce website is not converting, ask yourself: “Is checkout smooth, or is it a chore?”
Example: A customer adds sneakers to their cart. But to buy them, they have to: create an account, verify an email, fill in 12 fields, and deal with 3 pages before payment. That’s a marathon. They bounce at step two.
7. Do you show *extra* costs only during checkout?
If your eCommerce website is not converting, review your pricing transparency. Shoppers hate surprise charges.
Example: Someone adds a $40 hoodie to their cart. At checkout, they discover $12 shipping and a $3 “handling fee”, neither of which was mentioned before. They feel tricked and abandon the cart.
8. Are your CTAs converting less than 4%?
Call-to-actions should guide people. But if they’re bland or unclear, conversions nosedive.
Weak CTAs might be the sneaky reason your eCommerce website is not converting.
Example: Your product page has a beige button that says “Proceed.” Proceed to what? Meanwhile, your competitor has a bright red button that says “Yes! I Want These Sunglasses.” Guess who gets the click?
9. Is your social proof furthering sales?
If your eCommerce website is not converting, maybe you’re not showing that other people love your products. Social proof = confidence boost.
Example: You’re selling handmade candles, but there are no reviews, no testimonials, and no customer photos. Meanwhile, Etsy sellers have “5,000+ reviews” and UGC. Even if your product is better, it doesn’t look more trustworthy.
10. Does your discount campaign convert more than 2.5%?
Sometimes, if your eCommerce website is not converting, the issue isn’t technical; it’s strategic.
The offer just isn’t juicy enough to grab attention.
Example: You’re selling plain black T-shirts for $30. No story. No brand value. Meanwhile, a similar brand offers a “3-for-2” deal and positions theirs as ultra-soft, sustainable, and sweat-resistant. Guess who wins?
eCommerce Low Conversion Rate FAQs
What does low conversion rate say about your website?
A low conversion rate says that your website is not functioning optimally to draw in visitors and convince them to buy.
The typical areas that contribute to a low conversion rate on an eCommerce website include:
✔ Unclear navigation—if categories & subcategories don't fall under a simple hierarchy or if a hamburger menu hides the contents of the menu, it's likely to lead to lower conversions
✔ Uninspiring calls-to-action—whether it's the shape, the color, the placement or even the text, unoptimized CTAs can be uninspiring to use for visitors
✔ Inadequate trust symbols—from what you say about your brand & its values or practices to how safe it is to pay and checkout, it all has a bearing on your eCommerce conversions
✔ Too much or too less product content—either of these can be misleading for a visitor and can prevent them from making a solid purchase decision
✔ Poor quality images—images that can't set context of use or don't clearly show how the product will look in reality can lead to a low ecommerce conversion rate
What is a good conversion rate in 2025?
While the best eCommerce stores are all set to hit more than 4% conversion rate this year, there are also those who’re struggling at about 2%.
While the top 20% will see about 3.2%, the top 10% will clock in 4.7%.
On the other hand, while paid search conversions are likely to hit 4%, emails will clock in much more at an average of 10.3%.
Pro Tip: Run a benchmarking audit against competitor sites in your niche to get the most actionable insights on what seems to be working.
Further Reading: 41 "Underrated" Conversion Rate Optimization Ideas For eCommerce Stores
How to analyze low conversion rates?
As an eCommerce business, you can use multiple tools to assess your low conversion rates, and they can be applied to figure:
✔ Data across channels: This can help you see which channels are bringing you traffic and how these sources are also helping in conversions from time to time—studying channels can help you decide where to increase your spends for better rechability and impact
✔ Website behavior: Which actions visitors are taking more, which parts of the site they're spending more time on, how often they're returning to browse etc. can all signal towards conversion behavior
✔ Email clicks & opens: Without factoring in how your email audiences are converting, you can't decide if your overall conversion rate is low or not
✔ Quality of personalization: While analyizing low conversion rates, you have to keep an eye on the quality and extent of personalization for each shopper—if they're converting less, it could simply mean they're not seeing content or recommendations they truly prefer
How can you improve your website's conversion rates?
Even if the average conversion rates are lower in your industry, the top advertisers are outperforming you by 3-5x or more.
And while there’s no one answer to improving your conversion rate, we’ve seen how crucial it is to focus on understanding your customers' psychology.
Here are some ways to low conversion rates can be caused:
✔ Focus on micro conversions to begin with
Yeah, we’re talking about that popup to encourage email signup or automated email confirmation for product delivery.
✔ Offer hyper-personalized recommendations
Because an overdose of choices leads to decision fatigue.
✔ Introduce the guest checkout option
A study shows that 23% of buyers will abandon the cart if they have to create a new account.
✔ Make reviews a must
Online buyers trust product reviews 12-times more than the product description and sales copy.
70% of teens trust influencers over traditional celebrities and 49% of consumers depend on influencer recommendations.
✔ Ensure speed at every touchpoint
Offer shoppers instant gratification through mobile app-enabled shopping, instant downloads, a fast-loading website, and responsive and fast customer support.
Now you know the possible answers to 'why is my conversion rate so low' and strategies on how to improve this metric. Next?
Great UX fires up eCommerce Conversions
98% of visitors who visit an eCommerce site—drop off without buying anything.
Why: user experience issues that cause friction for visitors.
And this is the problem we solve.
We've helped 500+ eCommerce stores (in the US) improve user experience—and 2X their conversions with smart personalization tools.
Our conversion experts can audit your site—identify UX issues, and suggest changes to improve conversions.
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