The Problem
Launching a Shopify store is easy. Building one that converts is not.
The client had a strong product — a consumer health brand with differentiated positioning and real demand. What they didn't have was a digital storefront capable of doing that product justice. Their existing setup was a standard theme with minimal customisation: fine for an MVP, but leaving serious revenue on the table at the point where the business needed to scale.
The gaps were everywhere. Product pages that didn't sell the value proposition. No upsell or bundle logic in the cart. A checkout experience that leaked at every step on mobile. No mechanism to bring back abandoners. No landing pages optimised for paid traffic. And critically, no systematic way to improve any of it post-launch — changes were ad hoc, untested, and disconnected from performance data.
The brief we were given wasn't just "fix the store." It was: build a conversion machine — then keep making it better.
"Getting traffic to a Shopify store is expensive. The only sustainable advantage is converting more of the traffic you already have."
What Changed
The gap between a default store and a conversion-optimised one
To understand the scope of work, it helps to see the contrast directly. This wasn't a cosmetic redesign — it was a systematic rebuild of every layer that touches revenue.
Before
Off-the-shelf theme with no CRO consideration
Single product pages, no upsell or cross-sell logic
Broken mobile checkout on wallet payments
No bundle or multi-unit offer mechanics
Generic landing page for all paid traffic
Cart abandoned with no recovery sequence
No post-launch testing or iteration process
After
CRO-focused product and landing pages with structured hierarchy
In-cart upsell, bundle offers, and volume discount logic
Fully tested mobile checkout across all wallet payment types
Bundle funnels driving higher average order value
Campaign-specific landing pages for paid and organic traffic
Abandoned cart recovery flow with timed email sequences
Ongoing improvement cycle driven by heatmaps and session data
What We Delivered
A full-scope eCommerce engagement — not a one-off build
Most agencies hand over a finished store and move on. Our engagement was structured differently: the launch was the beginning, not the end.
🎯
CRO-focused landing pagesCampaign-specific pages built around a single conversion action. Clear hierarchy, benefit-led copy structure, and trust signals placed at decision points.
📦
Bundle & upsell funnelsMulti-unit bundle offers, complementary product cross-sells, and post-purchase upsell flows designed to increase average order value at every stage.
🛒
Custom cart logicTiered discount thresholds, free shipping progress bars, in-cart product recommendations, and conditional promotional messaging based on cart contents.
📱
Mobile optimisationFull device testing across iOS and Android — tap targets, scroll behaviour, sticky CTAs, mobile-native payment flows, and performance tuned for mobile connections.
✅
Structured QA & launch readinessSystematic QA covering 6 responsive breakpoints, 6 browsers, all payment methods, and every checkout edge case before a single visitor arrived.
🔗
API & fulfilment integrationsInventory sync, order management, and third-party fulfilment webhooks — tested for reliability and edge cases including out-of-stock handling.
📧
Abandoned cart recoveryTimed email sequences for cart abandoners, integrated with Shopify's native flow — configured, tested, and monitored for deliverability and open rates.
🔄
Ongoing maintenance & iterationPost-launch improvement cycles driven by heatmap analysis, session recordings, and conversion funnel data — turning insights into incremental wins each sprint.
Zero
Critical bugs post-launch
85+
Lighthouse mobile score
Ongoing
Post-launch CRO cycle
What This Means for the Business
A store that works harder than the team that built it
The biggest shift isn't in any single feature — it's in the compounding effect of getting every conversion layer right at the same time. When landing pages convert better, paid traffic ROI improves. When bundle logic increases average order value, each customer is worth more. When mobile checkout stops leaking on wallet payments, every campaign that drives mobile traffic suddenly performs better.
The ongoing iteration model means the store doesn't freeze at launch — it improves continuously. Heatmaps reveal where users hesitate. Session recordings show where they drop off. Each sprint translates that data into a specific test or change, and results feed back into the next cycle. The store gets smarter as the business scales.
How We Built It
The execution across every layer
CRO-first page architecture
Every product page and landing page was built with a defined conversion hierarchy — above-the-fold value statement, social proof placement, benefit-led copy, objection handling, and a friction-minimal add-to-cart path. Campaign landing pages were built as standalone pages with no navigation escape and single-action CTAs, reducing bounce for paid traffic.
Shopify LiquidSectionsMetafieldsCustom templates
Bundle funnels and upsell mechanics
Implemented multi-unit bundle pricing with dynamic discount logic in Liquid, conditional cross-sell recommendations on product pages based on category, and post-purchase upsell offers triggered on the order confirmation page. Cart drawer configured with tiered free-shipping progress bar and real-time recommendations.
Cart drawer JSDiscount APIProduct metafieldsConditional Liquid
Mobile checkout overhaul
End-to-end mobile checkout testing across iOS Safari, Chrome Android, Samsung Browser, and all wallet payment methods (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Shop Pay). Resolved 3 checkout edge cases causing payment failures on mobile wallet flows. Implemented sticky add-to-cart on mobile product pages.
Checkout customisationApple PayGoogle PayShop PayResponsive CSS
API integrations and inventory logic
Integrated Shopify Storefront and Admin APIs for real-time inventory sync with the fulfilment provider. Configured out-of-stock page behaviour, back-in-stock notification signup, and order webhook reliability testing. Two inventory sync issues resolved before launch — both would have caused overselling.
Storefront APIAdmin APIWebhooksInventory sync
Structured QA and launch readiness
A formal QA checklist was defined before development began — covering responsive breakpoints (320px to 1440px), 6 browsers, all payment methods, cart edge cases, and order confirmation emails. Each sprint deliverable was reviewed against the checklist. Zero critical issues surfaced post-launch.
QA framework6 breakpoints6 browsersLighthouse 85+
Post-launch iteration cycle
After launch, a recurring improvement process was established: heatmap and session recording analysis every two weeks, conversion funnel review, prioritised test backlog, and sprint-based implementation of changes. Each cycle produced measurable incremental improvements to conversion rate and AOV.
Heatmap analysisSession recordingsA/B testingEmail flows
Platform Architecture
Store layers — from storefront to fulfilment
→
🎯
Landing Page
CRO · Single CTA
→
📦
Product Page
Bundle · Upsell
→
→
📧
Recovery Flow
Abandoned cart
←
←
Tech stack by layer
1
Theme & UI
Shopify LiquidSections/BlocksCSSTheme Editor
2
Frontend logic
JavaScriptjQueryBootstrapAJAX cart
3
Conversion layer
Bundle logicDiscount APIUpsell flowsCRO pages
4
Platform APIs
Storefront APIAdmin APIWebhooksInventory
5
QA & iteration
QA checklistDevice testingHeatmapsA/B testing
QA coverage before launch
✓
Responsive design — 6 breakpoints from 320px to 1440px
✓
Cross-browser — Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge, iOS Safari, Chrome Android
✓
Full checkout flow — cart → checkout → payment → confirmation
✓
All payment methods — card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Shop Pay
✓
Bundle and discount logic — all tier combinations tested
✓
Inventory API — stock states, out-of-stock behaviour, webhooks
✓
Performance — Lighthouse mobile score 85+ on all key pages
Challenges We Solved
What made this more than a standard build
⚡
Bundle logic without a third-party appNative Shopify discount API doesn't natively support dynamic bundle pricing. Solved with custom Liquid logic and AJAX cart updates — no app dependency, faster page loads.
⚡
Mobile wallet checkout failuresApple Pay and Google Pay behaved differently depending on browser and OS version. Required device-specific testing and two rounds of checkout script fixes to fully resolve.
⚡
Inventory overselling risk at launchTwo sync issues in the fulfilment webhook configuration would have caused overselling on high-demand SKUs. Caught and resolved during integration QA before any traffic arrived.
⚡
Landing page performance on mobileCampaign pages needed to load fast on 4G connections. Achieved through aggressive image compression, lazy loading, and deferred non-critical JS.
Key Decisions
Why we built it this way
Native bundle logic over apps
Third-party bundle apps add page weight, introduce dependency risk, and often conflict with theme JavaScript. Custom Liquid and AJAX cart logic is more reliable, faster, and fully controllable — no monthly app fee, no version conflict headaches.
CRO-first from day one, not retrofitted
Adding conversion optimisation to an existing page is harder and less effective than building with it in mind from the start. Page hierarchy, copy structure, and trust signal placement were defined before a line of code was written.
Ongoing iteration model over a fixed handover
A store that's handed over and left alone degrades over time as user behaviour, traffic sources, and competitive context change. A recurring sprint model keeps improvement continuous and ties output directly to business outcomes.
QA framework before development, not after
Defining acceptance criteria before development begins means every build decision is made against a clear standard — issues are cheaper to fix and easier to communicate.