Common User Experience Issues That Lower Conversions

I get irrationally frustrated when I spend ages researching a product - bouncing between websites, reviews, and platforms - only to finally commit… and then discover it’s out of stock. It feels like all that intent, time, and energy just evaporates. The reality is that there is a large gap in online capabilities across the industry. As a consumer, instances of things like "stockouts" don't just cost a sale, they erode trust, halt customer acquisition and destroy momentum. And in a world where convenience wins, even good intentions can be undone by a single friction point. It turns out I’m not alone. Our research with Microsoft Advertising shows that 28% of shoppers often experience this, among a range of other points of friction that are damaging retailers’ sales. Every misaligned landing page, every broken promotion, every out-of-stock item that shows up in search… it's just bad UX. Our research uncovered a staggering insight: 1 in 5 shopping journeys are abandoned due to friction. And it’s high-value shoppers, digitally engaged customers, who are the least forgiving. 1️⃣ Friction isn’t random. It’s predictable. We saw six recurring issues: ➡️ Misaligned landing pages ➡️ Stock inaccuracies ➡️ Unexpected shipping costs ➡️ Price discrepancies ➡️ Failed promotions ➡️ Inconsistent loyalty rewards Each one chips away at trust and encourages shoppers to look elsewhere. 2️⃣ Frequent online shoppers experience the most friction. These are the customers who shop regularly, spend more, and are more digitally engaged. And they’re the ones facing the most pain: ➡️ 41% say the product page didn’t match the ad ➡️ 40% had discount codes fail at checkout ➡️ 39% encountered stock-outs at the last step ➡️ 38% saw price changes post-click ➡️ 37% said loyalty rewards didn’t carry over The most valuable customers with the highest LTV are being let down the most. 3️⃣ Friction hurts conversion and loyalty. Our research shows that over 50% of consumers spend less with brands when they encounter friction. And 40% will look elsewhere entirely if there’s inconsistency between your app, website or store. The bottom line is that poor UX has a direct impact on profitability. And the six areas of friction signal deeper-rooted issues across teams, tech stacks, and channels. And that misalignment is directly costing conversion, customer lifetime value, and brand trust. 💥 Inventory not syncing with front-end search. 💥 Promotions set centrally but broken at the point of checkout. 💥 Loyalty schemes behaving differently across touchpoints. Fixing this means aligning merch, tech, marketing and supply chain around the same journey, the one customers are actually taking. There is also an irony about how much it costs to acquire customers, when many retailers are then just disappointing them. Consistency in pricing, promotions, availability and experience is a strategic differentiator. 🔗 Download the report now https://lnkd.in/e9abZQQW

A client came to us frustrated. They had thousands of website visitors per day, yet their sales were flat. No matter how much they spent on ads or SEO, the revenue just wasn’t growing. The problem? Traffic isn’t the goal - conversions are. After diving into their analytics, we found several hidden conversion killers: A complicated checkout process – Too many steps and unnecessary fields were causing visitors to abandon their carts. Lack of trust signals – Customer reviews missing on cart page, unclear shipping and return policies, and missing security badges made potential buyers hesitate. Slow site speeds – A few-second delay was enough to make mobile users bounce before even seeing a product page. Weak calls to action – Generic "Buy Now" buttons weren’t compelling enough to drive action. Instead of just driving more traffic, we optimized their Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) strategy: ✔ Simplified the checkout process - fewer clicks, faster transactions. ✔ Improved customer testimonials and trust badges for credibility. ✔ Improved page load speeds, cutting bounce rates by 30%. ✔ Revamped CTAs with urgency and clear value propositions. The result? A 28% increase in sales - without spending a dollar more on traffic. More visitors don’t mean more revenue. Better user experience and conversion-focused strategies do. Does your ecommerce site have a traffic problem - or a conversion problem? #EcommerceGrowth #CRO #DigitalMarketing #ConversionOptimization #WebsiteOptimization #AbsoluteWeb

After 100+ site launches, I can predict which mistakes kill conversions. Wild, right? No matter the niche. I keep seeing the same 8: ❌ Broken links (who checks these before launch? not enough people…) ❌ Stock images (yes, I mean the ones everyone seen 100x) ❌ Fake testimonials (your cousin Tim is not fooling anyone) ❌ Popups in the first 2 seconds (ouch, my eyes) ❌ AI blog posts with zero value (Google knows. Users know) ❌ Loading spinners that never stop (still waiting... still) ❌ Moving sliders in the hero section (nobody clicks these, ever) ❌ Low contrast design (hard to read is hard to trust) Every. Single. Time. I wish I could say these are hard to fix. They’re not. You just need to spot them. I learned fast-fixing these lifts conversions overnight. Pretty design means nothing if your site tripwires users. Clarity wins. Speed wins. Real wins. Seen one (or all) of these on your own site? Anything you wanna add?

Your users aren't dumb - your UX is fighting their brain's natural instincts. Ever wonder why that "perfectly designed" feature gets ignored? Or why users keep making the same "mistakes" over and over? Listen founder, you're probably making these costly cognitive bias mistakes in your UX: Avoid: • Assuming users remember where everything is (they don't - it's called the Serial Position Effect) • Cramming too many choices on one screen (Analysis Paralysis is killing your conversions) • Making users think too hard about next steps (Mental fatigue is real) • Hiding important info "just three clicks away" (Out of sight = doesn't exist) Instead, here's how to work WITH your users' brains: 1. Put your most important actions at the beginning or end of lists (users remember these best) 2. Limit options to 3-5 choices per screen (users actually buy more when they have fewer choices) 3. Use visual hierarchies that match real-world patterns (we process familiar patterns 60% faster) 4. Keep important actions visible and consistent across all pages (our brains love predictability) Great UX isn't about being clever. It's about being obvious. Your users' brains are lazy - and that's okay. Design for how they actually think, not how you wish they would think. --- PS: What's the most counterintuitive UX decision that actually improved your conversions? Follow me, John Balboa. I swear I'm friendly and I won't detach your components.

🧠 I spent over 100 hours auditing 25 ecommerce websites to find what's killing conversions. Here are the learnings from 7 and 8 figure businesses making easily fixable mistakes. Some were painfully obvious. But a handful kept showing up over and over. Here are the Top 5 Areas that silently tank revenue on most ecommerce sites 👇 🛍️ Product Pages  • Poor images – No lifestyle context or size reference  • Confusing options – Variants not clearly explained • Missing info – Materials, sizing, or usage not shown  • Feature-heavy copy – Benefits not explained 💳 Checkout & Cart  • Hidden shipping – Only revealed at the last step  • Incomplete incentives – Missing progress indicators for free shipping  • Upsell overload – Too many or irrelevant offers 🗂️ Collection Pages  • Sold-out items – Shown first  • Wasted space – Hero banners push products below fold  • Poor filters – No friendly filter options  • Inconsistent design – Mixed image styles hurt UX 🏠 Home Page  • Vague value props – Doesn't explain what the brand offers  • Static banners – Look clickable but aren't  • Irrelevant messaging – Outdated promos still live  • Weak visual hierarchy – Key info buried ⭐ Social Proof  • No reviews – widgets showing “0 reviews” • Missing trust signals – No guarantees or security badges  • Poor review display – Broken star ratings or formatting  • No validation – No user-generated content or photos The best part? Every single one of these is a low or no-code fix. Most conversion killers aren't technical problems... they're customer confusion problems. Clear up the confusion, and conversions follow. Start with just 2-3 items from this list and you'll likely see results within weeks. 

Most brands think their checkout friction is about tech Wrong It’s about all the stuff you decided before checkout that made the experience clunky Here’s where friction 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 starts: 𝟭. 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 You’ve got a free shipping bar that only shows 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 I add something Or a discount code field that looks like it’s for people who know something I don’t Now I’m thinking, wait... should I go find a code? Every second I spend here = lower chance I convert 𝟮. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝘀𝗼𝗼𝗻 Create an account to continue  Why?  You just turned intent into a task Guest checkout should be the default unless you really have a valid reason to have it, and I do not care what you accounting or IT team said 𝟯. 𝗧𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗵 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 This is a big one  You show: 3 shipping speeds or oprions 5 payment methods 5 upsells That’s friction You’re turning checkout into a quiz Default me into the 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘯 path Let me change it if I want But don’t ask me to configure everything 𝟰. 𝗠𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱... 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 You tested on desktop But 78% of your traffic is mobile And your sticky Pay Now button overlaps with the Apple Pay modal Or worse... the CTA disappears unless you scroll That’s not mobile-optimized That’s mobile-neglected Oh, and if you tested mobile by resizing your screen or using dev tools…umm, that is not best practice. Far from it. Get your phone out and do it as your buyer would. 𝟱. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁 Let’s say I’m a new customer I’ve never bought from you You’re not on Amazon Do I see: Secure checkout badge? Trusted payment logos? Reinforcements about easy returns and/or exchanges. Reminders that a canceling your subscription is a click away. A visible returns policy at checkout? If not... you’re asking me to trust you 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 Want better conversion? Fix the journey before the final step That’s where the real leaks are

CEO: "Our website doesn't convert, it must be the copy" Wrong. Before you hire another copywriter, think about what's really broken. Copy gets blamed for conversion problems constantly, but most of the time it's not what you're saying...it's everything else that's falling apart. If someone can't find your pricing, your CTA button is invisible, or your checkout process takes seven steps, the most persuasive copy in the world won't save you. I've watched companies spend months rewriting homepage copy, then wondering why their new "compelling messaging" isn't working. All while their bounce rate is through the roof because their site takes 10 seconds to load. Conversion optimization is mostly about removing friction, not adding persuasion. The stuff that kills conversions? 👉 Page speed. Your site takes more than 3 seconds to load? People are gone before they read a single word. 👉 Navigation that makes no sense. If people are hunting around for basic information, your copy's irrelevant. 👉 Broken mobile experience. Over half your traffic is mobile. If your mobile experience is garbage, your desktop copy doesn't matter. 👉 Missing trust signals. Sometimes a simple testimonial or security badge does more than your entire value proposition. 👉 The endless forms. A 12-field contact form tanks conversions faster than bad copy ever could. Good copy matters. But it's the polish, not the foundation. You can't write your way out of fundamental experience problems. Before you start rewriting everything, look at where people are bailing. Pull up some heatmaps. Watch a few session recordings. You'll probably see them getting stuck on the dumbest stuff. Fix the experience first, then worry about the words. -- Want more growth hacks like this that can catapult your business forward?    Sign up to my weekly growth hacks newsletter for easy to implement hacks every Sunday:  <https://lnkd.in/eGMgpwUA>

Your design isn't just failing to convert - it's actively pushing customers away. After analyzing hundreds of landing pages at Obvi, I've noticed something: The biggest conversion killers aren't your product or price. They're subtle design mistakes that add up. First, your CTA should be impossible to miss. Most brands bury their buttons in a sea of competing elements. Quick fixes that work: • Use high-contrast colors • Keep primary CTAs above the fold • Add directional cues that guide eyes • Test sticky buttons on scroll Next, images aren't decorations - they're conversion tools. Every visual on your page needs to earn its place by either showing your product in action, validating claims with social proof, or mirroring your target customer. Cluttered designs destroy trust. Give your elements room to breathe and ruthlessly remove anything that doesn't drive conversion. Clean design equals clear action. Focus on: • Distinct content blocks • Scannable paragraph widths • Clear section breaks • Strategic white space A BIG one - The mobile experience can't be an afterthought. Most users are on phones, yet I still see brands designing desktop-first. Make your pages thumb-friendly, stack elements vertically, and ensure text is actually readable on small screens. Always - - Lead with benefits - Use subheads strategically - Create a natural flow toward conversion When done right, your design feels less like a sales pitch and more like helpful guidance.

Most people talk about getting more traffic, but more traffic won’t fix a broken user experience. 70% of eCommerce traffic is mobile, yet most checkout experiences are still designed for desktop users. If your revenue is plateauing, here’s what’s likely happening:  - Your site loads fast but your users don’t move fast. A mobile page that loads in 2 seconds means nothing if users still have to pinch, zoom, and navigate endless dropdowns to buy.  - Your checkout process isn’t mobile-friendly, it’s just mobile-accessible. There's a difference. The friction that feels minor on the desktop becomes a conversion killer on mobile. Autofill, express checkout options, and one-tap payments aren’t "nice to have" anymore—they’re non-negotiable. - You’re treating mobile like a smaller version of a desktop. Mobile users have different intents and behaviors. They skim, scroll, and expect instant clarity. If they have to think, you’ve already lost them. What You Need to Fix: Now ✅ Design for mobile-first, not mobile-friendly.   Move away from desktop-first thinking. Your site should be built for mobile behavior, not just adjusted to fit a smaller screen.  ✅ Make checkout invisible. No excessive form fields. No distractions. Think one-click, biometric payments, and seamless autofill. ✅ Test real behavior: not assumptions. Don’t rely on industry best practices. Watch your users, analyze session recordings, and fix friction where they actually drop off. Your mobile experience doesn’t need to be “good enough.” It needs to be effortless. Because if you don’t optimize for mobile conversions, you’re leaving 70% of your revenue potential on the table. #customerexperience #ux