Highbourne Group
City Plumbing Enhancing Product Discovery Across PLP & CLP
Project Summary
About City Plumbing
A leading UK supplier of plumbing, heating, and electrical products for trade professionals & homeowners.
Project
Improve the usability and conversion of product category pages (CLP) and product landing pages (PLP) by reducing friction in discovery, and add-to-basket flows — for trade users who shop frequently and are under time pressures and retail homeowner customers.
Scope: Website Redesign – Product Listing Page (PLP) & Category Listing Page (CLP)
Sector: E-commerce (Trade & Retail)
Tools: Figma, Monetate & Google Analytics
User testing: Internal
Year: 2025
Part 1: Increasing Interaction on Category Landing Pages (CLPs)
Problem statement
The product category pages created friction in product discovery, especially for trade users under time pressure. Oversized imagery pushed key content below the fold—forcing mobile users to scroll and causing many to skip the page entirely.
The CLP needed to better support both trade and retail goals—promoting key products, serving as a category hub, and improving overall SEO performance.
User Insight
Research included: competitor analysis, Google Analytics & Monetate
and user journey and heat map analysis through Medallia & Decibel.
Reduced scroll
Low content engagement, with an average scroll reach of 32%. Large category cards limited the number of items visible above the fold, reducing content exposure.
Underutilised category-level information
Competitor analysis showed that our page missed an opportunity to support to new customers using blogs and guides which could increase conversion.
Lower interaction
An average of 15% lower interactions and exposure compared to other pages on site.
1
Category cards
2
Promotions, blogs & tools
Design solutions & results
We wanted to give the user access to all relevant content with minimal cognitive effort. Having blogs, buying guides, or promotions helps DIY users make easier decisions, and also helps with SEO, that was important to the business.
1 - Category Cards
Changes & Rationale
Card size was reduced to increase content density on the page. Research indicated that users were scrolling less and clicking through at a lower rate compared to other pages, largely because too few categories were visible above the fold. Increasing the number of visible cards helped signal that more content was available, encouraging exploration.
At the same time, image sizes were carefully balanced to remain large enough for quick visual scanning and recognition.
Results
While overall exploration improved, images may still have been slightly too small for optimal scanability. A follow-up A/B test was identified as the next step to validate the ideal image size and further optimize performance.
2 - Promotional & Knowledge Blocks
Changes & Rationale
The additional space created by reducing card size was used to feature key deals, tools, blogs and promotional content above the fold, making them more visible to users. This placement aimed to increase engagement with promotions and support higher click-through rates, while also driving potential increases in average order value.
Results
Click-through rates on category-specific deals increased. By surfacing relevant promotions directly on the category page—rather than only on the homepage—users were able to access the best prices at the right time, improving both engagement and perceived value.
Part 2: Improving Product discovery & ATC on PLP
Problem statement
The existing PLP did not support product discovery leading to low user engagement which meant higher drop offs.
The page lacked flexibility for business needs (promos, SEO integration) resulting in missed opportunities for disovery and conversion. A new design was needed to improve product discovery and align with business objectives.
Initial Steps
Collaboration with the CRO team & trading team helped pinpoint previous tests that delivered improvements and business needs.
- The analysis of user session recordings and behavioural data from Medallia revealed friction points, user pain areas, and optimisation opportunities.
- The trading team needed flexible areas for promotions and feature highlights to drive awareness to our brands and tools to drive higher sales margin.
User Insight
Filter clarity and data quality: Users often lacked confidence that filters were applied correctly, with inconsistent data causing confusion and reducing usage.
Popular filters: This feature boosted engagement and helped users find products faster.
Visual feedback: Animated filter states were proven to improve usability and engagement.
1
Horizontal Filters
2
Add to basket
3
Promo space
4
Variations
Proposed Ideas
1
Sticky horizontal filters
To drive higher engagement and allow more products to appear above the fold, some filters will remain visible. CRO tests found that it increased filter use by 18%.
2
Add to basket
A single add to basket button streamlines the purchase journey making browsing and buying faster and easier for users by reducing cognitive load.
3
Displaying variations
Displaying all available product options directly on the card helps users quickly find the right variation, improves discoverability of similar products, and streamlines the path to purchase.
4
Promo space
A dedicated space for products and promotions would help increase product or brand awarness (of our own brand products) which could increase revenue and help with business requirements.
Stakeholder Feedback & Prototype Testing
Prototypes were developed to assess design feasibility, usability, and alignment with business goals. Stakeholder sessions highlighted budget constraints, therefore high impact features such as one add to cart button were deprioritised.
Internal testing with product, CRO, content, and trading teams identified usability concerns, technical limitations, and content gaps. Design was refined based on this feedback to ensure the final design met both user and business requirements.
A/B Test for Mobile Redesign
An A/B test was conducted to evaluate the redesigned mobile product card. The variation with a smaller image (Image A) outperformed the control, showing a 30% improvement in engagement, a 20% increase in conversion rate, and a lower bounce rate. Revenue per session also rose by nearly 10%, confirming the effectiveness of the updated design in enhancing user interaction.
Results Summary
The redesigned category and product listing pages delivered measurable improvements.
Better filtering system and product layout enhanced product visibility, reduced bounce rates, and increased conversions by presenting relevant alternatives. Complaints about products decreased significantly; however, ongoing data inconsistencies continue to cause occasional filter‑related issues that are being addressed in later phases.
The final design successfully aligned business priorities with user needs, creating an efficient data‑driven shopping experience.