How to Maximize Sales and AOV on Shopify Without Relying on Heavy Discounts

One of the most common mistakes Shopify merchants make is relying too heavily on discounting to drive sales. While discounts can create short-term spikes in revenue, they often come at the cost of long-term profitability and customer expectations. Over time, frequent discounts train customers to hold off on purchases until the next sale.

If you want to build a more sustainable, profitable business, it’s crucial to think beyond discounts. A better approach is to maximize your Average Order Value (AOV) and create a shopping experience that encourages customers to buy more—because they see more value.

In this article, we’ll walk through practical, proven strategies to help you increase AOV on Shopify while maintaining a premium customer experience.

Or, if you prefer to listen, we did a deep dive on increasing your AOV on our YouTube channel here:

Why Focusing on AOV Is Critical for Shopify Success

One of the most common mistakes ecommerce brands make is relying too heavily on discounts to drive sales. While limited-time offers and flash sales can create short-term spikes in revenue, they often come at the cost of long-term profitability, customer loyalty, and healthy margins.

Over time, frequent discounts can lead to cart abandonment from existing customers who’ve been trained to wait for the next offer. This weakens perceived value and erodes the bottom line of your Shopify store.

Instead, you should optimize for Revenue Per Session—a combination of conversion rate and Average Order Value (AOV).

When you raise your AOV, you increase revenue without having to acquire new traffic, which is often the most expensive and unpredictable part of growing an e-commerce business.

Maximizing AOV allows you to get more value from every visitor and improve the sustainability of your Shopify store.

Formula: AOV = Total Revenue ÷ Number of Orders

4 Strategies to Maximize Shopify Sales and AOV

The art of boosting AOV is about customer behavior psychology—helping people spend more while improving their user experience. The best strategies are rooted in customer satisfaction, perceived value, and a sense of urgency.

Here are proven marketing strategies ecommerce stores can use to boost AOV:

1. Use Product Bundles to Offer More Value

Product bundling is one of the most reliable strategies to increase average order value on Shopify.

Bundles make shopping easier for customers, allow them to discover complementary products, and often create a stronger emotional connection to the purchase.

There are several types of Shopify bundles to consider:

• Build-Your-Own Bundles: Allow customers to customize their purchase by choosing products that fit their preferences. Personalization taps into a customer’s sense of autonomy and leads to higher satisfaction and larger carts.

Example: Check out how Revel Nail leveraged personalization to create custom nail polish sets that reflect the shopper's taste (case study here). This bundle not only meets individual preferences but also makes it feel like the customer is in control of their purchase.

With Simple Bundles, offering build-your-own bundles is super easy. In most cases, brands are limited by Shopify’s 100-variant limit, which makes it difficult to let customers personalize their bundle offers too much. Our Infinite Options feature allows you to create an unlimited number of combinations, meaning you can give your customers as many options as you want.

• Gift Bundles: Curated gift sets are ideal for holidays, birthdays, and special occasions. For example, offering a "Mother’s Day Self-Care Set" with candles, bath salts, and a customized card reduces the decision-making burden for shoppers and makes gifting effortless.

Example: Kerotin’s holiday bundles are a great example of curated collections that simplify holiday shopping. While the products themselves aren’t specifically tied to BFCM, the landing page leans into the BFCM exclusivity theme, seamlessly tying into the holiday spirit.

• Classic Product Bundles: Combine complementary products into one simple package. For instance, a coffee brand could bundle a bag of beans, a grinder, and a branded mug into a "Morning Starter Kit."

Example: Glow Recipe, a skincare brand found in Sephora, Ulta Beauty, and more, offers a “Dry Skin Routine Kit,” featuring a cleanser, toner, moisturizer, and serum to to hydrate, plump and soothe skin during the harsh winter months.

• Wholesale or Bulk Bundles: Target B2B customers with larger bundle options that offer better value per unit. Wholesale bundles are an excellent way to encourage larger purchases while building loyalty among businesses.

Key considerations for effective bundling:

• Focus on convenience, savings, or personalization depending on your target audience.
• Make bundles feel logical and valuable—not random groupings.
• Highlight bundles during seasonal moments or special events to drive urgency.

By creating thoughtful bundles, you can increase cart size while making the shopping experience smoother and more rewarding.

2. Leverage Free Shipping Thresholds to Boost Cart Sizes

Free shipping has evolved from a nice perk into a customer expectation. However, you can still use it strategically to increase AOV.

Setting a free shipping threshold just above your current AOV encourages customers to add additional items to meet the minimum.

For example, if free shipping starts at $50 and a customer’s cart is at $45, they are far more likely to add another item than to abandon their cart.

So how can you promote free shipping thresholds effectively? Try

• Adding banners on your homepage, product pages, and cart pages clearly communicating the threshold.
• Using progress bars or messaging like, “You’re only $5 away from free shipping!” in the cart or at checkout.
• Suggesting low-cost add-on product recommendations to help customers easily reach the threshold.

Bundles can also help customers hit the free shipping mark more quickly, further increasing their perceived value. This strategy improves both AOV and conversion rates by making the incentive of free shipping feel like an achievable win for the customer.

3. Implement Upsell Strategies at Key Customer Touchpoints

Upselling is an essential tactic for any brand focused on how to maximize AOV on Shopify. However, upsells need to feel helpful—not pushy.

Effective upselling focuses on relevance and timing. Here’s how to apply upsells strategically throughout the customer journey:

• Pre-Purchase Upsells: Offer add-ons or complementary products while the customer is browsing. Example: If a customer is viewing a moisturizer, suggest a toner or serum that complements it.
• Cart Page Upsells: Recommend low-cost, relevant items during the cart review stage. Example: Add a matching phone case when purchasing a smartphone. Glossier does this well:

• Post-Purchase Upsells: Present special offers immediately after checkout when the customer is already in a buying mindset. Example: Offer a discounted add-on, like an after-sun lotion following a sunscreen purchase.

One approach that brands have used successfully is using live chat-based upselling. For example, customer service tools like Gorgias allow support teams to suggest products to customers based on browsing behavior—offering an upsell in a way that feels natural and supportive.

You can see how Pet Honesty does this to promote a bundle deal on specific product pages:

The most important rule: upsells should feel like they’re helping customers complete their order, not adding random pressure to buy more.

4. Incentivize Larger Purchases With Tiered Discounts and Rewards

Encouraging customers to buy in larger quantities is a tried-and-true method for increasing average order value.

There are two primary approaches:

1. Tiered Discounts: Offer escalating savings based on quantity.Example:

• Buy 2, Save 10%
• Buy 3, Save 20%
• Buy 5, Save 30%

2. Threshold-Based Rewards: Provide perks once a customer reaches a specific cart value.Example:

• Spend $100 and receive a free gift.
• Spend $150 and save 20% on your order.

Womads did this during Black Friday, showcasing the tiered discounts in its email campaigns:

Pair this with a loyalty program to reward existing customers for larger purchases and repeat purchases. This increases customer satisfaction, encourages new customers to spend more on their first purchase, and boosts customer lifetime value.

For consumable or repeat-purchase products (like supplements, skincare, or packaged foods), highlight the practical benefits of buying in bulk, such as reduced shipping costs or longer-lasting supply.

Creating a dedicated "Stock Up and Save" section on your Shopify store can make it even easier for customers to find and take advantage of larger purchase incentives. Check out this example from Innosupps!

Final Thoughts: Building a More Profitable Shopify Store

Building a sustainable, profitable Shopify store isn’t just about driving more traffic or offering more discounts. It’s about increasing the value of every single transaction.

To summarize:

• Thoughtful bundling improves customer experience and cart size.
• Strategic free shipping thresholds encourage higher spend.
• Smart upselling adds convenience and perceived value.
• Tiered rewards make larger purchases attractive and attainable.

By focusing on increasing AOV alongside conversion rates, you can create a more resilient, profitable business model—one that delights your customers while strengthening your bottom line.

If you want more tips on increasing AOV, you can grab our AOV ebook here. Packed with tips from experts in the Shopify space.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1) Why shouldn’t I rely on discounts to increase sales?
While discounts can create short-term spikes in revenue, they erode long-term profitability and train customers to wait for sales. Heavy discounting also weakens brand perception and makes it harder to maintain healthy margins.

2) What is AOV and why does it matter?
Average Order Value (AOV) = Total Revenue ÷ Number of Orders. Raising AOV means you earn more revenue per transaction without increasing acquisition costs. Since paid traffic is one of the most expensive parts of ecommerce growth, increasing AOV makes every click more profitable.

3) How can product bundles boost AOV?
Bundles increase cart size by combining products that naturally go together. Customers get convenience and value, while merchants lift revenue. Examples include:

• Build-your-own bundles for personalization
• Gift bundles for seasonal occasions
• Classic bundles with complementary products
• Wholesale packs for bulk buyers

4) Won’t bundles mess up my Shopify inventory?
Not if you use a bundling app like Simple Bundles, which automatically breaks orders into individual SKUs. This keeps inventory accurate, prevents overselling, and ensures smooth fulfillment across Shopify, 3PLs, and POS.

5) How can I use free shipping to raise AOV?
Set your free shipping threshold slightly above your current AOV. Example: if your AOV is $45, set free shipping at $50. Customers will add another item to hit the threshold, boosting both AOV and conversion rate.

6) What are the best upsell tactics for Shopify?

• Pre-purchase upsells: Suggest complementary products while browsing.
• Cart upsells: Recommend low-cost add-ons at checkout.
• Post-purchase upsells: Present one-click offers after checkout.
  When timed right, upsells feel helpful—not pushy.

7) How do tiered discounts or rewards impact AOV?
Tiered incentives motivate larger carts. Example:

• Buy 2, save 10%
• Buy 3, save 20%
• Spend $100, get a free gift
  These structures create urgency and make bulk buying attractive.

8) How do I know which strategy works best for my store?
Track AOV, revenue per session, and bundle take rate in Shopify analytics. Experiment with different bundle types, shipping thresholds, and upsells. Small tests quickly reveal what resonates most with your audience.