Low AOV is usually not a pricing problem. It is a structural one: the store only ever offers one way to buy.
1. Build a pack ladder that argues for itself
The highest-leverage change available in most consumable categories. Offer more than one size or quantity, price every tier visibly, show the per-unit cost, and state the reason to trade up in one line.
The mistake we see most is discounting every tier identically — packs of one, two and three all at 25% off. Trading up then buys the customer nothing and the page gives no reason to prefer one. On the Oximan page we replaced that with a free gift that unlocks on the larger packs: same margin, one decision instead of two.
2. Set the free-shipping threshold against your actual data
Most thresholds are a round number somebody picked. The useful one sits slightly above your current average order value, so it pulls baskets up rather than subsidising the ones you already had.
Then make it visible on the product page and in the cart, with the gap stated — how much more to qualify. A threshold nobody sees does nothing.
3. Bundle around how the product is used
Not a random discount pairing. A bundle works when it reflects a real routine — the cleanser with the serum, the starter set, the refill with the device.
The test is whether a customer would have wanted the combination anyway. If yes, the bundle removes friction and raises value. If no, it is a discount pretending to be merchandising.
Post-purchase upsells are the one place to be careful. They can add value without risking the order, but an aggressive one at the wrong moment makes people cancel the whole thing rather than decline the extra.
What does not work
Minimum order values. They convert a small order into no order.
Blanket discounting for volume. You train people to wait, and you give margin to customers who would have paid full price.
Cross-sells that compete with the product. Selling an alternative on the product page at the moment of decision costs you the decision. We found exactly this on one store — an accessory sold separately further down the page was competing with the product it sat on. Turning it into a reason to buy the bigger pack fixed both problems at once.
Talk it through
Send us a product page and your current AOV.
We will tell you whether a pack ladder, a threshold or a bundle is the right lever for what you sell, and roughly what it is worth.
Get a readA real read within one business day — not a sales call.
About the author
Manpreet Singh
Manpreet Singh is the founder of Proscube, an ecommerce growth studio. He leads the studio's Shopify and Shopify Plus engineering, headless builds, CRO, and its work on AI engine optimization, and writes its guidance on how to grow a DTC brand without wasting money. He works directly with founders — no account-manager layers between you and the people doing the work — and would rather tell a client not to build something than sell them work they don't need.
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