Why we started

Checkout Conversion Guide began in 2021 after our founders, Maya Chen and Derek Okafor, spent a combined 14 years working checkout flows at a mid-sized apparel retailer and a payment processor. They kept seeing the same pattern: store owners had plenty of advice about driving traffic, but almost nothing specific about the last three screens of the purchase. When a cart was abandoned, the default response was a discount code, not a diagnosis.

We started as a two-person research project, auditing 40 stores in the outdoor gear and home goods categories. The first report, published in March 2022, showed that 68% of the audited checkouts asked for a phone number before showing shipping cost. That single finding led to changes at 11 of the 40 stores. We incorporated as an LLC later that year.

What we do

We publish teardown reports, run controlled tests on checkout flows, and maintain a public library of cart recovery email and SMS templates. Our work is funded by subscriptions to our research library and by flat-fee audits. We do not take affiliate commissions from checkout software vendors, and we do not sell placement in our reports.

Our team of five includes two conversion researchers, one data analyst, and two writers who previously worked in ecommerce operations. We are based in Portland, Oregon, and Austin, Texas.

How we work

Every test we publish follows a pre-registered design: we state the hypothesis, sample size, and success metric before running it. If a result is inconclusive, we say so. In 2023, we ran 22 tests; 9 produced statistically significant lifts, 7 showed no effect, and 6 were inconclusive due to traffic volume. We report all three outcomes.

We also publish our mistakes. In 2022, we recommended removing order notes fields from checkout; later testing showed that for stores selling personalized items, removing the field increased support tickets by 40% without improving conversion. We retracted the recommendation and wrote about why.

Who we are

Maya Chen, co-founder and lead researcher. Previously led checkout optimization at a top-50 apparel retailer, where she ran 200+ A/B tests. Maya holds a master's in human-computer interaction from Carnegie Mellon.

Derek Okafor, co-founder and data lead. Former product manager at a payment processor, where he managed the hosted checkout product. Derek built our test analysis pipeline and writes the monthly benchmark report.

Priya Nair, senior researcher. Joined in 2022 from an ecommerce agency where she managed cart recovery programs for 30+ stores. Priya leads our email and SMS template library.

Sam Rivera, writer and editor. Former operations manager at a home goods brand, Sam translates our research into practical guides and ensures every claim is backed by a test or a cited source.

Jordan Lee, analyst. Jordan maintains our dataset of 1,200 checkout audits and handles statistical review.

Our values

• Evidence over opinion. If we can't test it, we label it as a hypothesis, not a recommendation.
• Transparency about funding. Our revenue comes from subscriptions and audits; we list all clients on our website.
• Respect for the reader's time. We write for operators who need to make a decision today, not for search engines.
• Admit uncertainty. When the data is mixed, we say so, even if it makes a less satisfying story.

What we don't do

We don't claim to have all the answers. Checkout behavior varies by industry, device mix, and customer base. A tactic that works for a $50 subscription box may fail for a $500 furniture store. We tell you when our sample doesn't cover your case.

We also don't accept guest posts that promote a product, and we don't run sponsored content. If a vendor wants to be included in a report, they can submit their tool for testing like everyone else.

Get in touch

If you have a checkout flow you'd like us to consider for a teardown, or if you've spotted an error in our work, email us at hello@checkoutconversionguide.com. We read every message, though we can't always respond individually.