Reading a conversion funnel without drowning in sessions
How we choose which funnel steps matter for a catalogue retailer before drawing the first chart.
Most shops can export dozens of micro-events. For a conversion reporting pack we keep five steps: product view, add-to-bag, checkout start, payment attempt, and paid order. Extra events only join the chart when a client already acts on them in merchandising meetings.
Why five steps
Buying teams decide photography, size runs, and promo depth. Those decisions map cleanly to whether shoppers reach bag, start checkout, and pay. Session replays and heatmap tools stay with the client’s web team.
Thin samples
If a category has fewer than fifty paid orders in the period, we mark the conversion rate as directional. Printing a precise percentage next to a thin sample misleads the next media buy.
Device splits
We split mobile and desktop when both have enough orders. Mixed tablet traffic usually folds into mobile unless the export already separates it cleanly.