Shrimpton Agency

Too often, conversations about conversion start in the wrong place.

We were recently asked to provide examples of how our UI design work at Shrimpton Agency had increased AOV and ROI. On the surface, it sounds reasonable. But it’s also a loaded question that assumes UI designers and developers are responsible for fixing deeper brand problems through interface tweaks, CRO experiments, and ever-changing website features. That framing is flawed.

When brands struggle to convert, the reflex is just tactics: redesign the site, add upsell apps, try new layouts, inject urgency, cross-sell harder. These tactics are often deployed to compensate for something more fundamental — a lack of brand clarity, desirability, or conviction. UI and development teams are then expected to “solve” perceived conversion issues inside the narrow context of a website experience, while the real issue lives downstream, at the brand level.

Conversion does not start with the interface. It starts with desire.

A brand people genuinely want doesn’t need to shout, interrupt, or manipulate. It doesn’t rely on bolted-on upsells to raise AOV. The website simply becomes the cleanest possible expression of a brand that already feels inevitable. When brand, aesthetic, and point of view are aligned, conversion follows naturally — not because the UI is doing tricks, but because the customer has already decided they want in.

Which brings us to one of the clearest examples of brand-driven conversion done right, MERIT BEAUTY, a brand cited as aspiration by our beauty clients more than any other.

Merit Beauty doesn’t chase conversion — it attracts it.

From the moment you land on their site, the brand feels resolved. The aesthetic is slick, mature, and confident without being cold. Neutral palettes, refined typography, and restrained layouts communicate restraint and taste. Nothing feels accidental, and nothing feels desperate. This is a brand that knows exactly who it is — and just as importantly, who it isn’t.

Aesthetic as trust-building, not decoration

Merit’s visual language does heavy lifting long before a customer reaches the cart. Their photography is editorial but approachable, polished but human. Products are styled as objects of desire, not commodities competing for attention. This consistency builds trust — and trust is a prerequisite for higher AOV.

When a brand looks expensive, intentional, and self-assured, customers behave differently. They add more to cart. They hesitate less. They assume quality before reading a single value prop.

A shopping experience that doesn’t beg

Notably, Merit avoids the usual e-commerce crutches. There’s no barrage of pop-ups, no frantic “people also bought” clutter, no aggressive cross-sell logic cheapening the experience. The shopping flow is clear, calm, and obvious — because it can be.

The brand doesn’t need to manufacture urgency. Desire is already present.

Why this translates to higher AOV

Merit’s higher average order value isn’t the result of clever UI tricks. It’s the outcome of brand discipline. Customers aren’t buying around the brand — they’re buying into it. Each additional product feels additive to a lifestyle, not like a forced upsell.

This is the difference between optimization and conviction.

The real lesson for brands

If your conversion strategy begins with “what app should we install this week,” you’re already solving the wrong problem. UI and development can — and should — support conversion, but they cannot manufacture belief, taste, or desirability on their own.

Brands like Merit remind us of a harder truth: The fastest way to increase conversion is to become a brand people genuinely want.

Do that, and the website doesn’t have to work as hard.