Strategic discounting: improving UX while growing revenue

Industry: Music
Team: Developer, Website Manager, UX Designer, Business Founder
My role: UX research, strategy, wireframing, UI design, development collaboration

Key tools:

Google Analytics 4 logo
Adobe Xd logo
Microsoft Clarity logo

Background
My client wanted to introduce a new tier of discounts specifically for accessories on their existing e-commerce website. Free shipping already existed, so the new offer needed to complement it and be delivered in a way that felt relevant. The goal was to highlight value at the right time, improving upsells and meeting accessibility standards, while keeping the user journey simple and intuitive.

Project overview

Challenges

The business needed a way to:

  • Increase accessory sales through strategic upselling

  • Surface discount messaging early in the browsing journey and at the checkout

  • Integrate the new feature seamlessly without complicating the checkout journey

  • Maintained trust and accessibility standards

  • Deliver a solution optimised for both desktop and mobile users

Strategy and solution

UX research and competitor analysis was conducted to understand how leading e-commerce brands handled similar challenges. Based on these insights:

  • A callout banner was introduced to highlight the discount at the right touchpoints

  • The basket page was restructured with dynamic content to personalise the experience

  • Targeted messaging was added to the accessories page

  • Information was re-ordered to improve content hierarchy and reduce friction

  • The UI was audited and recommendations given to ensure accessibility and mobile optimisation.

Wireframes and prototypes were created in Adobe XD to explore solutions, validate design decisions, and guide the development team through implementation.

Value and outcome

The solution launched with built-in tracking to measure its impact on sales and user behaviour. Early analytics show increased engagement with accessory products and stronger visibility of discount messaging at key stages of the journey.

Insights 5 days post launch:

  • High engagement with new discount banner - users across all devices have frequently clicked on the global banner, indicating high interest in this offer. It’s getting attention and is being seen. In 5 days the global banner has achieved 67% of clicks from desktop and 34% on mobile.

  • Increased visibility of upsell section - on desktop, 99% of users reached the accessories banner in the basket, up from 97% the previous month. 57% reached the buy buttons.

  • Stronger accessory conversions on mobile - the accessory conversion rate jumped to 14.3% in the first 5 days of September, compared with just 3.1% in August (comparing the first item in the section).

From the files

Wireframes to share early thinking of messaging and positioning of elements

Live implementation