Ali Demirbaş - Lab
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Cart & Checkout

A/B Test: Payment Screen With Named Load Steps

Replacing a generic spinner with accurate steps tied to the real payment process may make waiting easier to understand.

  • Checkout
  • Payment-step abandonment rate

Control vs Variant

What the interface does on its own is the variable.

Changed
Behavior
Page
Checkout
Difference
changed

Hypothesis

The actual processing time should remain unchanged.

How to run this test

Primary metric

Payment-step abandonment rate

Among visitors who see the step-based progress screen during payment, compare those who leave before the process finishes.

Other metrics

  • Perceived wait time (survey)If surveyed, measure perceived wait time; abandonment alone does not measure trust.
  • Actual processing timeMake sure the step screen does not increase actual processing time.
  • Support after an errorTrack support requests after failed transactions.
  • Payment success rateMake sure overall payment completion does not fall.

What to check before and during the test

  • Progress displayShow steps tied to real transaction events instead of a spinning icon.
  • TimingKeep processing, verification and error handling intact; do not add artificial waiting.
  • Perceived waitMeasure perceived waiting separately from actual processing time.
  • ErrorsShow existing error states promptly when a transaction fails.
  • ConnectionReview mobile and slower connections without changing the progress display during the test.

Setup mistakes to avoid

  1. 1Do not artificially slow processing to show a longer loading screen.
  2. 2Do not display steps that do not actually happen, such as a nonexistent fraud check.
  3. 3Do not change the loading display and number of payment steps together.
  4. 4Do not leave visitors stuck on a progress screen after failure; show a clear error promptly.
  5. 5Do not use the loading screen to bypass or hide security checks such as 3-D Secure or OTP.