We killed our permanent "20% Off" discount banner. Revenue increased by 28%.

We kept a persistent banner on top of our checkout page offering a 20% discount for "new users." We thought it was lowering the barrier to buy.

We analyzed 150,000 checkout visits:

• Users who abandoned checkout to search Google for "better coupon codes": 27%

• Average time spent on checkout with discount banner: 4.2 minutes

• Users who contacted support claiming the code "didn't apply": 5.4%

The permanent discount wasn't creating urgency. It was signaling that our product wasn't worth full price. It trained users to hesitate and go look for bargain deals elsewhere.

We removed all discount banners and replaced them with a single, clear promise: "14-day full refund, no questions asked."

• Checkout completion rate went up by 28%

• Average order value increased by 16%

• Support tickets related to payment dropped to near zero.

Is your discount encouraging customers to buy, or is it making them doubt the value of your product?