Sales & Conversion
Personas
Ecommerce
Time to ROI
Short-term (< 3 months)
Last year, I took on a Shopify website revamp for a client drowning in their own success. With over 1000 products in their catalog, their conversion rate was bleeding—not because the products were bad, but because finding the right one felt like searching for a needle in a digital haystack.
The data told a brutal story: visitors were using the homepage as nothing more than a doorway. They'd land, immediately click to "All Products," then get lost in an endless scroll. The homepage had become irrelevant.
While every "best practices" guide preached about hero banners, featured collections, and carefully curated product sections, I went rogue. And it worked. The homepage reclaimed its throne as the most viewed AND most used page, conversion rate doubled, and time to purchase decreased significantly.
Here's what you'll learn from my unconventional approach:
Why traditional category page structure fails for large catalogs
The mega-menu navigation system that actually works
How to turn your homepage into a functional product catalog
AI automation workflows for managing 1000+ product categorization
When to break industry standards vs when to follow them
This isn't another generic "best practices" guide. This is what happens when you challenge every assumption about category page design and optimize for actual user behavior instead of industry opinions.
Industry Standards
What every ecommerce "expert" recommends
Open any ecommerce design guide and you'll see the same recycled advice about category page structure. The industry has collectively decided on a "proven" formula that goes like this:
Hero banner with lifestyle imagery - Because apparently every visitor needs to see a perfectly lit product photo before they can shop
Featured collections sections - "New Arrivals," "Best Sellers," "Staff Picks" arranged in neat little boxes
Product category grids - 2x2 or 3x3 image tiles linking to category pages
Trust signals and testimonials - Social proof scattered throughout to build confidence
Newsletter signup forms - Because every visitor definitely wants to join another email list
This conventional wisdom exists because it works—for small catalogs with 20-50 products. When you're selling handmade jewelry or artisanal coffee, curated collections make sense. Visitors can browse your entire range in a few minutes.
But here's where this approach breaks down: it assumes all ecommerce stores are the same size. The same structure that works for a boutique pottery shop becomes a conversion killer when you're managing 1000+ products across dozens of categories.
The real problem? Most ecommerce platforms and agencies keep pushing this one-size-fits-all solution because it's easier to implement and looks great in portfolio screenshots. But looking great in a portfolio and converting visitors are completely different goals.
Consider me as your business complice.
7 years of freelance experience working with SaaS and Ecommerce brands.
The client came to me with a frustrating problem that every large catalog store faces. They had built a successful business with over 1000 products, but their website conversion rate was stuck at 0.8%. Traffic was good, products were quality, prices were competitive—but something was broken in the customer journey.
After analyzing their traffic flow, the pattern became clear. Most users landed on the homepage, spent about 15 seconds scanning for what they needed, then clicked the "All Products" link. From there, they'd scroll through endless product grids, get overwhelmed, and leave without buying anything.
The traditional homepage structure was working against them. Beautiful hero banners showcasing "featured products" meant nothing when visitors couldn't find what they actually wanted. The carefully curated "collections" sections only represented about 5% of their total inventory.
My first instinct was to improve the existing structure—better filtering, cleaner category pages, more intuitive navigation. I tested various improvements: clearer category names, improved product photography, streamlined filtering options. The results were marginal at best. We saw small improvements, but nothing that solved the core problem.
That's when I realized we were treating symptoms instead of the disease. The issue wasn't how we presented the categories—it was that we were hiding the products behind unnecessary layers. Every click between a visitor and their desired product was a conversion killer.
The breakthrough came when I stopped thinking about "best practices" and started thinking about actual user behavior. If 80% of visitors immediately clicked "All Products," why were we forcing them to take that extra step? Why not give them what they wanted directly on the homepage?
Here's my playbook
What I ended up doing and the results.
Here's exactly what I implemented to transform their category page structure, and why each decision moved the needle:
Step 1: Killed the Traditional Homepage Structure
I removed everything that stood between visitors and products. No hero banner, no "Featured Products" sections, no "Our Collections" blocks. If it wasn't helping someone find a specific product, it got cut. This felt radical, but the data supported it—visitors weren't engaging with brand messaging, they were hunting for products.
Step 2: Created a Mega-Menu Navigation System
Instead of simple category links, I built a comprehensive mega-menu that displayed subcategories, popular products, and even price ranges. But here's the key: I implemented an AI workflow to automatically categorize new products across 50+ categories. This wasn't a one-time setup—it was a dynamic system that kept the navigation relevant as inventory changed.
Step 3: Transformed Homepage Into Product Gallery
The most controversial decision: I displayed 48 products directly on the homepage. Not "featured" products or "best sellers"—just a smart rotation of available inventory. Added only one additional element: a testimonials section for trust signals. The homepage became the catalog itself.
The AI Categorization Workflow
Managing 1000+ products manually would be impossible, so I built an AI system that analyzed product attributes and automatically assigned them to relevant categories. The workflow pulled product data, analyzed descriptions and specifications, then placed items in multiple relevant categories when appropriate. This kept the navigation accurate without constant manual updates.
Smart Product Display Logic
The 48 homepage products weren't random. I created rules based on seasonality, inventory levels, and conversion rates. New arrivals got priority for 30 days, then the system shifted to proven performers. Low-stock items got featured to clear inventory. The homepage became a dynamic sales tool.
Mobile-First Category Structure
On mobile, the challenge was even greater. I redesigned the category structure as an accordion-style system where users could drill down without leaving the current page. Each category expansion showed subcategories and product count, so users knew exactly what they'd find before clicking.
Quick Wins
Immediate changes that boost conversions without major redesigns
Navigation Overhaul
Building mega-menus that actually help users find products faster
AI Automation
How to manage large product catalogs without manual categorization work
Mobile Strategy
Adapting category structure for small screens and thumb navigation
The results challenged everything I'd been taught about ecommerce homepage design:
Conversion Rate: Jumped from 0.8% to 1.6%—exactly doubled within 30 days of implementation. More importantly, this improvement was consistent across both desktop and mobile traffic.
Homepage Engagement: The homepage went from being a "bounce page" to the most engaged page on the site. Time on page increased 150%, and the homepage became the second most common page in the purchase path (after individual product pages).
Category Navigation Usage: The mega-menu system saw 300% more interaction than the previous category links. Users were actually exploring the catalog instead of getting overwhelmed by it.
Search Behavior Changes: Internal site searches dropped 40%, indicating that the improved navigation was helping users find products without needing to search. When users can browse effectively, they don't need to hunt.
The most surprising outcome? Customer feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Instead of complaining about the "non-traditional" layout, customers praised how easy it was to find products. Sometimes what looks wrong to designers feels right to users.
What I've learned and the mistakes I've made.
Sharing so you don't make them.
Here are the key lessons from completely rethinking category page structure for large product catalogs:
User behavior trumps design conventions - If 80% of users immediately click "All Products," don't make them click. Give them products directly.
Category structure should scale with inventory - What works for 50 products fails at 1000+. Design for your actual catalog size, not industry examples.
Automation becomes essential at scale - Manual product categorization breaks down with large inventories. Build systems that maintain themselves.
Mobile requires different category logic - Desktop navigation patterns don't translate to mobile. Plan mobile-first category structures from the start.
Test radical changes with data backup - Before implementing major structural changes, have rollback plans and clear success metrics defined.
Homepage can be functional, not just branded - If visitors want products, give them products. Brand storytelling can happen elsewhere in the customer journey.
AI categorization needs human oversight - Automated systems work well but need periodic review to catch edge cases and maintain accuracy.
The biggest takeaway? Industry "best practices" are starting points, not finish lines. When you have a unique challenge—like a massive product catalog—you need unique solutions. Sometimes the best feature page structure is the one that removes features entirely.
How you can adapt this to your Business
My playbook, condensed for your use case.
For your SaaS / Startup
For SaaS platforms managing large feature sets or integrations:
Replace feature carousels with searchable feature grids on your homepage
Implement dynamic categorization for integration libraries based on user behavior
Use mega-menus to showcase feature depth without overwhelming navigation
For your Ecommerce store
For ecommerce stores with 500+ products:
Test showing products directly on homepage instead of category teasers
Implement AI-powered product categorization to maintain navigation accuracy
Build mobile-first category structures that minimize clicking between products