Show a locked-in discount when a visitor tries to leave

Jan 13, 2026

One experiment that shows how urgency and the right offer at the right moment can recover visitors who were about to leave.

  • WHO: Digital & CRO teams  
  • INDUSTRY: Media & Entertainment  
  • IMPACTED PAGES: Checkout flow 

Experiment 1: Exit-intent countdown with a locked-in discount 

Hypothesis: If we show a countdown for a special offer to visitors who abandon the page, we will increase our conversion rate. 

Demo form testImage source: Optimizely

Results:

  • +20% Increase in revenue  
  • +$6M Projected total annual revenue 

Takeaways: 

  1. The updated exit-intent modal is an evolution of a previous winner, highlighting the need for continuous evolution of your previous wins. 
  2. Urgency, locked-in discount, and simplified body and CTA copy played a part in the new winning variant.
  3. The combination of urgency and discount satisfaction is a potent method of affecting visitor behavior. 

Last year's winning model is already losing

Visitor fatigue is real. The exit-intent experience that worked before is working less now. 

The Experimentation Ideation Agent keeps surfacing what to test next, and the Experiment Summary Agent connects what worked to what to evolve, because every win is the starting point for the next test. 

 

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