Does a brands we carry section lift homepage conversion?
The homepage of an online marketplace did not show which brands it sold. We tested a brands we carry section, in a bold and a muted style. Conversion fell 57.7% for the muted version over 22 days.
Lost Responsive 22 days Called at 90%
The hypothesis
By showing the brands carried on the homepage, we will help visitors find brands they trust, resulting in more orders.
The marketplace sold products from many brands, but the homepage gave no quick view of them. We wanted to learn how highlighting those brands would change what visitors did next.
The test ran after a new homepage hero had been implemented, so both versions built on that page.
What we changed
We added a brands we carry section to the homepage.
Variation A added a brands we carry section with the brand logos shown prominently. Variation B added the same section in a muted style, so it drew less attention. The rest of the homepage stayed the same.
- Brands we carry section added
- Brand logos shown prominently
- Same brands section as Variation A
- Muted style that draws less attention
The result
Conversion fell 57.7% with the muted brands section.
Both versions had lower conversion than the control after 22 days. The muted section, Variation B, fell 57.7%, and the bold section, Variation A, fell further.
Order volume stayed low through the whole run, so we paused the test rather than run it longer and moved on to the next homepage test.
What we took from it
A short list of brands may have turned some visitors away.
A brands section only helps visitors who see a brand they want. On this homepage, a visitor who did not find a favorite brand in the list may have assumed the site did not carry it. Low order volume also made the result hard to read with precision.