When Conversions Drop and You Don’t Know Why: A Calm Technical Checklist

There is a certain type of pressure that creeps in when conversions dip and you cannot immediately see the reason. Traffic might still be steady. Campaigns are running. Nothing looks broken. Yet revenue feels softer and you cannot quite put your finger on it. This is usually the moment people start reacting instead of reviewing. They install something new, change messaging, tweak offers, or assume the market has shifted. Most of the time, it is not that serious. It is usually technical friction that has quietly built up underneath.

The first place we look is theme updates. Even small theme changes can affect structure, scripts, or customisations that were added months ago. A section might load differently. A piece of code added for a specific campaign might not be compatible anymore. A visual adjustment might unintentionally push key content further down the page. It is worth checking what was updated, when it was updated, and what custom edits were layered on top. If you cannot clearly track changes, that is usually part of the problem. Good housekeeping around updates saves a lot of stress later.

Next, we review scripts properly. Most stores have tracking pixels, chat tools, pop ups, upsell features, review apps and various bits of code running at once. None of these are bad on their own. The issue is when they overlap or compete. Two tools might try to control the same button. A discount script might conflict with cart logic. A pop up might delay page interaction on mobile. These issues rarely show themselves in an obvious way. They show up as hesitation, slight lag, or inconsistent behaviour. Testing add to cart and checkout across devices while checking for console errors often reveals more than any dashboard ever will.

Tracking is another area that causes unnecessary panic. We have seen stores assume performance dropped significantly when in reality the reporting broke. If a thank you page script fails, if tracking is duplicated, or if a pixel was partially removed during an edit, the numbers can look worse than they actually are. Always test the full journey yourself. Place a test order. Confirm whether events fire correctly. Compare platform data with payment gateway data. Never rely on one analytics view without validating it against something real.

Checkout logic is one of the most common hidden issues. Shipping rules can change. Free delivery thresholds might stop triggering correctly. Payment providers sometimes update requirements. Tax settings can shift if regions are adjusted. Customers will not email to explain that a postcode is not accepted or that a discount code will not apply. They will simply leave. Reviewing shipping zones, tax rules, discount behaviour and payment gateway settings after any update is essential. Even a small misalignment can quietly affect conversion rates.

Speed degradation is often overlooked because it happens gradually. A new app here, a new script there, larger imagery, additional tracking, and suddenly the site feels heavier. You may not notice because you are used to it. New visitors will. Even a small delay impacts behaviour. Checking page size, unnecessary global scripts and app load impact can uncover easy wins. Removing duplication and loading tools only where they are actually needed can improve performance without changing design or strategy.

The key is to approach it calmly and methodically. Look at what changed recently. Review what was added. Question whether each tool is still needed. Test journeys yourself instead of assuming the data is right. Conversions rarely fall for no reason. There is usually a technical cause that can be traced and corrected.

If this sounds familiar and you are staring at numbers that do not quite make sense, book a non sales discovery call with us. It is simply a conversation about what you are seeing, what has changed recently, and whether there is a clear technical route to stabilise things