How 3 seconds improved conversion rates by 2% for this fashion retailer
summary
In this case study we’ll dive into how we helped an online fashion retailer’s digital experience by tweaking their WooCommerce platform’s performance. We shaved off 3 seconds from their page load time, which bumped up their conversion rate from 3% to 5% – a great result.
the beginning
We partnered with an online fashion retailer known for its impressive array of stylish, techno-inspired attire and accessories. Despite the store’s fantastic product lineup, they were struggling with low conversion.
the challenge
Their site was clocking an average load time of 7 seconds, which was significantly higher than the ideal 2 seconds. This slow performance was causing customers to abandon their carts and leave the site, resulting in a disappointing 3% conversion rate. We were tasked with untangling these technical hurdles to enrich the user experience and, in turn, fix conversions.
the plan
We agreed to fulfill the essentials package to them. We would implement fixes around image optimization, plugin cleanup, CDN setup, minification across the board & more.
the execution
- Website Audit: We rolled up our sleeves and first conducted a thorough audit. Using nifty tools like Google PageSpeed Insights and GTmetrix, we spotted the troublemakers – high-res images, too many CSS and JavaScript files, no caching, a cluttered database, and slow server response time.
- Image optimization: We found the site was packed with uncompressed, high-quality images. We used ShortPixel to shrink these images without losing any quality and swapped some to WebP format for quicker loading.
- Caching setup: Without caching, browsers had to load the entire website every single visit. We fixed this by installing W3 Total Cache, cutting down load times for return visitors.
- CSS / JS minification: The CSS and JavaScript files were like heavy weights slowing the site down. We used tools like Autoptimize to lighten the load, reducing their size without messing up the site’s functionality.
- Server migration: We moved the website to a better host with WP Engine, a service known for its speedy response times for WordPress sites.
- DB cleanup: The WooCommerce database was filled with old orders, unused tags, and categories. This was slowing things down, so we removed unnecessary data and went on with our lives.
in conclusion
After all that hard work, we knocked the website loading time down from 7 seconds to a sleek 4 seconds. And the crowd goes wild! Not only did user engagement metrics shoot up, but within the first month, bounce rates also took a 20% nosedive.
But wait, there’s more! The real game-changer was the conversion rates. In just the first month, it shot up to 5%! That’s a significant increase
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