How a single modal cleared 70 units of dead stock in 3 weeks without a discount
I have always paid more attention to the moment before someone decides than to the interface itself. The strongest design works on instinct, on the subconscious, before the person is even aware they are deciding anything at all.
The problem
Motorcycle and bike covers sat with no turnover while the core product kept selling. Bulk production absorbed cost without return.
What conversion design means to me
Not persuasion tricks. Understanding the psychological weight behind a choice and shaping the interface around that weight, not against it.
Post-purchase combo modal, shown before the final confirmation screen
The behavioural insight
Rather than pushing a discount, I looked at the psychology of the purchase moment. A single upsell reads as a push, something to resist. Two options shown at once shift the frame, the customer chooses between offers instead of deciding whether to engage at all.
Designing the intervention
The modal triggered immediately after order confirmation, before the final screen. Presenting two combo options was deliberate, it reframed the decision entirely.
x
Version A, icon only
Testing the dismiss CTA
The dismiss action was the variable I was least certain about, so I tested two versions.
No thanks, I'll pay full price later
Version b, won
Version B consistently outperformed. The text CTA forced users to consciously articulate the cost of declining, activating loss aversion at the moment of decision. The icon simply disappeared, the sentence created a micro-moment of hesitation the offer could fill.
Outcome
Both secondary SKUs sold out within 3 weeks
The business shifted production from bulk to combo-focused manufacturing, a structural change driven entirely by a UX decision.
What I'd do differently
Test the combo earlier, at the product page, before the purchase is mentally closed. Instrument scroll depth and time-to-dismiss to see if the friction created was the right kind.