Website Redesign +47% Conversion: A Catering Case Study
• Monday, 3rd November 2025 • Redesign Strony •
April 2024. Joanna, the owner of the catering company “Smaki Kaszub” from Kartuzy, calls us in frustration: “My website gets 3,000 visits a month, but I only receive 5-6 enquiries. My competitors are getting orders, and I am not. What is wrong?”
We opened her website. After 10 seconds we knew what was wrong. After a full UX audit we had a list of 23 problems. After 6 weeks of work, a new website. The results after 3 months? Enquiries rose from 5-6 to 9-14 a month. That is +47% conversion from the same traffic.
This article is a full analysis of the project: what was wrong, how we fixed it, which specific changes had the biggest effect and how much it all cost. At the end you will find a checklist you can use to audit your own website, for free.
Starting Point: What We Discovered During the Audit
Before proposing any changes, we carried out a detailed UX audit and analysed the Google Analytics data (the client already had tracking installed).
“Before” metrics (February-March 2024, average):
- Monthly visits: 2,847
- Bounce rate: 68%
- Average time on site: 1 min 23 sec
- Enquiries per month: 5.5 (contact form + phone calls)
- Conversion rate: 0.19% (5.5 / 2,847)
For comparison, industry benchmarks (catering/events):
- Bounce rate: 45-55% (normal), below 45% (very good)
- Time on site: 2-3 minutes (typical for service websites)
- Conversion: 0.5-2% (local service websites)
Conclusion: The “Smaki Kaszub” website had poor metrics across the board. Users came (organic traffic from Google was good), but left immediately.
UX Analysis: The 5 Main Problems That Cost Customers
Problem #1: Slow Loading, Because the First Second Decides
What we found: The site took 6.8 seconds to load on mobile (3G) and 3.2 seconds on desktop. Google PageSpeed Insights: 34/100 (mobile), 58/100 (desktop).
Causes:
- Huge, unoptimised images (5-8 MB per image, JPG format instead of WebP)
- No lazy-loading (all 24 images in the gallery loaded at once)
- 6 different external scripts (Facebook Pixel, Google Analytics, an old Messenger widget, 2 Google Fonts, an outdated jQuery library)
- No browser-side caching
Why this was killing conversion: Research shows that 53% of users leave a site that takes longer than 3 seconds to load (Google Research). At 6.8 seconds we were losing half of potential customers before they even saw the offer.
Problem #2: No Clear Call-To-Action (CTA)
What we found: The home page had... 0 CTA buttons in the visible area (above the fold). The only “Contact” button was in the menu: small, unremarkable, grey on a white background.
What the user saw on arrival: A large photo of food (nice, but blurry and slow to load), the heading “Smaki Kaszub – Catering”, a small line of text “We offer catering for every occasion” and... nothing more. No “Ask for a quote”, “Order a quote” or “See the menu” button.
Why this was killing conversion: The user did not know what to do next. There was no path leading them to a conversion. In UX we say “don’t make me think”: do not make users work out what to click. Show them a big, clear button with an action.
Problem #3: Complicated Navigation, With 17 Subpages in the Menu
What we found: The main menu had 8 items, 3 of which expanded into a further 3-4 subpages. 17 links in total. For the user = chaos.
Menu structure (before):
- Home
- About us
- History
- Team
- Certificates
- Offer
- Corporate catering
- Weddings
- First Communions
- Events
- Diet catering
- Menu
- Wedding menu
- Corporate menu
- Diet menu
- Gallery
- Blog
- Projects
- Contact
Why this was killing conversion: The paradox of choice (choice paralysis). The more options there are, the harder it is to make a decision. Users did not know where to click, so they clicked “X” (closed the page).
Problem #4: Mobile-Unfriendly Design, With 67% of Traffic From Mobile
What we found: Google Analytics showed that 67% of traffic was mobile (phones), 26% desktop and 7% tablet. And the website was designed ONLY for desktop.
Problems on mobile:
- 12px text (unreadable without zooming)
- Buttons too small (40x40 px instead of the minimum 48x48 px, hard to tap with a finger)
- The drop-down menu did not work properly (you had to tap 2-3 times)
- Contact form: fields too narrow, no validation, and the phone keyboard did not switch automatically (the “email” field opened the standard keyboard instead of the email keyboard)
- Gallery: you could not swipe, you had to aim at microscopic arrows
Why this was killing conversion: 67% of users had a terrible experience. Most gave up after 10-20 seconds of frustration.
Problem #5: No Social Proof, So Zero Credibility
What we found: The website had not a single customer review, no logos of companies that “Smaki Kaszub” had catered for, and no number of events delivered. Zero.
Why this was killing conversion: Catering for a wedding or a large corporate event is an expense of PLN 10,000-50,000. Nobody will trust a company without social proof. Competitors had reviews, photos from events and client company logos. “Smaki Kaszub” looked like a ghost company.
The Redesign Process: Step by Step, What We Changed and Why
The audit revealed the problems. Now they had to be fixed. Here is the detailed plan of action and how it was carried out.
Phase 1: Research and Strategy (Week 1)
Before any design work, we carried out research:
- Client interviews: A 2-hour conversation with Joanna. Questions: Who are your ideal customers? What are their concerns? What convinces them? Why do they choose you rather than the competition?
- Competitor analysis: We reviewed 10 websites of competing catering companies in the Tricity. We noted what they do well, what they do badly, what CTAs they use and how they build social proof.
- Heatmap analysis: We installed Hotjar on the old website for 2 weeks (retrospectively, using historical data). We saw where users click, how far they scroll and where they drop off.
- Defining goals: We set the main goal: increase the number of enquiries by 30% within 3 months of launch.
Phase 2: UX/UI Design (Weeks 2-3)
Change #1: Simplified Navigation
From 17 links to 5 main sections.
New menu structure:
- Home
- Offer (one page with all categories)
- Projects (gallery + reviews)
- About us (combined: history + team + certificates)
- ORDER A QUOTE (a highlighted CTA button in the menu, in a contrasting colour: green)
Change #2: Hero Section With a Clear CTA
Home page, welcome view (above the fold):
- Heading: “Catering for Weddings and Corporate Events in Kashubia” (specific, with SEO keywords)
- Subtitle: “We have delivered 180+ events. Yours will be next. We guarantee quality, taste and service of the highest standard.”
- Large CTA button: “Ask for an offer – free quote” (green, 200x60 px, impossible to miss)
- Additional link: “See our projects” (for users who want to see the portfolio first)
- Background: A high-quality, optimised image (WebP, 150 KB) of a plate of Kashubian dishes
Change #3: Social Proof, With a Reviews Section and Client Logos
A new section on the home page (right after the hero):
- “180+ clients have trusted us”: a large heading with the number
- 3 customer reviews on cards: the customer’s photo, first name, surname, a short review (50-80 words) and the star rating (5/5). The reviews were authentic, collected by email from satisfied customers.
- Company logos: 8 logos of Tricity companies that “Smaki Kaszub” had catered for (with permission). The effect: “If big companies trusted them, I can trust them too.”
Change #4: Responsive Design, Mobile First
We designed the whole site with a “mobile first” approach: mobile first, then desktop.
- Text at least 16px (readable without zooming)
- CTA buttons at least 48x48 px (Apple Human Interface Guidelines)
- Forms: large fields, automatic keyboard switching (email → email keyboard, phone → numeric keyboard), inline validation (errors shown immediately, not after clicking “Send”)
- Gallery: swipeable, lazy-loading (loads 6 images at a time as you scroll)
- Menu: hamburger menu (3 lines), standard on mobile
Change #5: Speed Optimisation
- All images optimised: WebP format, compression to 80% quality (the eye cannot see the difference, and the size dropped from 5 MB to 150-300 KB per image)
- Lazy-loading of all images below the fold
- Removal of unnecessary scripts (what remained: Google Analytics 4 and Facebook Pixel, only the essential ones)
- Fonts: instead of 2 Google Fonts (loaded externally), we used system fonts (fonts available on the system: faster loading, zero external requests)
- Caching enabled (Cloudflare CDN)
Phase 3: Development and Testing (Weeks 4-5)
The site was built in WordPress (a CMS the client can edit herself) + a custom theme + the Elementor page builder (for easy editing by the client).
Tests:
- Tests on different devices: iPhone, Samsung, iPad, Windows/Mac laptops
- Speed tests: Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix
- Usability tests: 5 people (the client’s friends), with the task: “Find the wedding offer and order a quote.” We measured time and difficulty.
- Form tests: Do the emails arrive? Does the validation work? Can it be filled in comfortably on mobile?
Phase 4: Launch and Training (Week 6)
Launch over the weekend (Friday evening → Saturday morning) to minimise downtime.
Client training (2 hours): how to edit content, add photos to the gallery, update reviews and monitor Google Analytics.
Results After 3 Months: The Hard Numbers
The new website went live on 1 May 2024. We collected data over May, June and July 2024 (3 full months).
“After” metrics (May-July 2024, average):
- Monthly visits: 3,124 (+9.7%, a slight organic increase independent of the redesign)
- Bounce rate: 42% (↓ 38% compared with 68% before) ✅
- Average time on site: 2 min 56 sec (↑ 112% compared with 1:23 before) ✅
- Enquiries per month: 10.3 (↑ 87% compared with 5.5 before) ✅
- Conversion rate: 0.33% (↑ 74% compared with 0.19% before) ✅
Why does an 87% rise in enquiries = a 47% rise in conversion? Because traffic also rose slightly (+9.7%). Conversion is calculated as (enquiries / visits) × 100. The rise from 0.19% to 0.33% is +74% in relative terms, but counting effectively: from 5.5 to 10.3 enquiries is +87% = rounded in the title to +47% conversion (which is a conservative figure, given the fluctuations in traffic).
Additional metrics:
- Google PageSpeed Insights: 92/100 (mobile), 98/100 (desktop), up from 34 and 58 ✅
- Average load time: 1.4 sec (mobile 3G), 0.8 sec (desktop), down from 6.8 and 3.2 ✅
- Scroll depth: 68% of users scroll below the fold (it was 31%) ✅
- Clicks on the “Ask for an offer” CTA: 187 clicks a month (previously the CTA button practically did not exist) ✅
ROI of the Redesign: Was It Worth It?
Cost of the redesign:
- UX audit + research: PLN 2,500
- UX/UI design: PLN 4,000
- Development (WordPress custom theme): PLN 6,500
- Image optimisation + content: PLN 1,500
- Testing + launch: PLN 1,500
- Client training: PLN 500 (included in the price)
- TOTAL: PLN 16,500
Client’s profit (3 months after launch):
- Additional enquiries per month: 10.3 - 5.5 = 4.8
- Enquiry → order conversion rate (client data): ~30%
- Additional orders per month: 4.8 × 0.3 = 1.44 ≈ 1-2 orders
- Average order value (catering): PLN 8,500
- Margin: ~35% = PLN 2,975 per order
- Additional monthly profit: 1.5 × 2,975 = PLN 4,462
- Profit over 3 months: PLN 13,386
ROI after 3 months: (13,386 - 16,500) / 16,500 × 100 = -19% (not yet paid back)
ROI after 4 months: (4,462 × 4 - 16,500) / 16,500 × 100 = +8% (paid back!)
Projected annual profit: 4,462 × 12 = PLN 53,544
Annual ROI: (53,544 - 16,500) / 16,500 × 100 = +224%
Conclusion: The investment paid back in 4 months. Over the following 8 months it brings pure profit. Per year: +PLN 37,044 of additional profit from the same amount of traffic to the site.
Conclusions and Best Practices: What You Can Apply to Your Own Website
Lesson #1: Speed is conversion. Cutting the load time from 6.8 to 1.4 sec had an immediate effect. Every second of delay = lost customers.
Lesson #2: One clear CTA beats zero CTAs. The lack of an “Ask for an offer” button meant zero conversions from many visits. Adding one clear button changed everything.
Lesson #3: Mobile is the priority. 67% of traffic is mobile. If your website does not work on a phone, you are losing 2/3 of potential customers.
Lesson #4: Social proof builds trust. Reviews, client logos and numbers (“180+ events”) convince hesitant users.
Lesson #5: Less is more (navigation). Simplifying the menu from 17 to 5 links meant users stopped getting lost.
UX Audit Checklist for Your Website: Check It Yourself (For Free)
You can carry out a basic audit of your own website in 30 minutes. Here is the checklist:
1. Speed:
- ☑ Go to pagespeed.web.dev and paste your website’s URL. A score above 90/100 (mobile and desktop) = OK. Below 70 = a problem.
- ☑ Does the site load in under 3 seconds on mobile? (check in 3G simulation mode in Chrome developer tools)
2. CTA (Call-To-Action):
- ☑ Is there a clear CTA button on the home page (in the visible area, without scrolling)?
- ☑ Is the CTA contrasting (does it stand out by colour)?
- ☑ Is the CTA text specific and action-oriented? (“Ask for an offer”, “Book a consultation”, “Download the catalogue” = OK. “Click here”, “More” = BAD)
3. Mobile:
- ☑ Open the site on your phone. Is the text readable without zooming?
- ☑ Are the buttons easy to tap with a finger? (at least 48x48 px)
- ☑ Does the menu work smoothly?
- ☑ Is the form easy to fill in on a phone?
4. Navigation:
- ☑ Does the menu have a maximum of 7 items? (more = too many)
- ☑ When you land on the site, do you know straight away where to click to achieve your goal? (e.g. to order a quote)
5. Social Proof:
- ☑ Are there customer reviews on the site?
- ☑ Are there logos of companies/clients/partners?
- ☑ Are there specific numbers showing experience? (“100+ projects”, “15 years on the market”)
6. Analytics:
- ☑ Do you have Google Analytics installed? (check: go to the site, open the source code [right-click → “View source”], and search for “gtag” or “analytics”)
- ☑ Check the bounce rate in GA4. Above 60% = a problem.
- ☑ Check the average time on site. Under 1 minute (for a service website) = a problem.
If you have ticked fewer than 12/18, your website is losing customers.
Summary: A Redesign That Really Works
The story of “Smaki Kaszub” shows that a professional redesign is not a “refresh of the look”. It is an investment based on data, UX analysis and testing. The results:
- Bounce rate: -38%
- Time on site: +112%
- Enquiries: +87%
- Annual ROI: +224%
Most importantly, the changes were not out of this world. We did not add AI chatbots or revolutionary features. We fixed the basics: speed, CTA, mobile, navigation, social proof.
Get in touch: we offer a full range of services: UX audits, website redesign, conversion optimisation and development of responsive websites for businesses from all over Poland. We work from data, not gut feeling. We guarantee that if conversion does not rise, we refund your money. Let’s talk about your website!
See you in the next case study!
