5 Ways Coupon Codes Make You Lose Customers

That Empty Coupon Field Is Costing You More Than You Think‍

You've spent hours crafting the perfect discount campaign. The Instagram ads are running, emails are sent, and you're ready to watch the sales roll in. But here's the frustrating part—your cart abandonment rate keeps climbing, and you can't figure out why.

The culprit might be hiding in plain sight: your coupon code field.

That innocent little box at checkout seems helpful. But for many Shopify stores, it's silently driving customers away. When shoppers see an empty "Apply Coupon Code" field, something clicks in their brain. They start wondering if they're missing out on a deal. So they leave your checkout, open a new tab, and search for "[Your Brand] coupon code." Sometimes they find one. Sometimes they find a broken one. And sometimes they just never come back.

Research shows that 70% of online stores have coupon code fields that don't auto-apply discounts, which causes many shoppers to leave mid-purchase. If you're losing customers and can't figure out why, your discount strategy might be working against you. Let's break down the five biggest ways coupon codes hurt your conversions, and what you can do instead.

‍

The "Coupon Hunting" Problem

Here's a scenario you might recognize. A customer adds products to their cart, excited to buy. Then they notice an empty coupon field at checkout. Suddenly, they feel like they're about to overpay.

This triggers what psychologists call "fear of missing out." Instead of completing the purchase, they open Google and search for a discount. According to Statista, 8% of customers cite "no coupon available" as their main reason for abandoning a cart. That might sound small, but with average cart abandonment rates hovering around 70%, every percentage point matters.

The worst part? Many of these customers never return. They get distracted, find a competitor, or simply forget about your store. You've essentially trained them to leave your checkout and look elsewhere.

‍

Broken Codes Create Instant Frustration

Let's say a customer does find a coupon code, maybe from an old blog post, an expired influencer campaign, or a random coupon aggregator site. They copy it, paste it into your checkout, and hit apply.

Nothing happens. Or worse, they see an error message.

Studies show that 46% of shoppers abandon their carts when a discount code doesn't work. That's nearly half your potential customers walking away because of a technical hiccup that wasn't even your fault. They don't know the code expired last month. They just know your store "doesn't work," and they're gone.

This creates a terrible shopping experience that damages trust. Even if the customer eventually finds a working code, that moment of frustration sticks with them.

‍

Manual Codes Add Checkout Friction

Every extra step in your checkout process is a chance to lose customers. When someone has to remember a code, type it correctly, and click apply, you're adding friction to what should be a smooth user journey.

Research from Baymard Institute found that 17% of shoppers abandon purchases because the checkout process is too complicated. And here's the thing: your customers already have their credit card out. They're ready to pay. Making them hunt for a code or manually enter it is like putting a speed bump right before the finish line.

The more steps between "I want this" and "I bought this," the more opportunities for your customer to change their mind, get distracted, or bounce to a competitor.

‍

Invisible Discounts Kill Your Ad ROI

You're running a Facebook campaign promising 20% off with code SUMMER20. A customer clicks your ad, lands on your product page, and sees... full price. No discount visible anywhere.

Now they have to remember the code, navigate to checkout, and manually apply it. Most won't bother. They'll assume the ad was misleading or the sale ended. Your carefully crafted campaign just lost a sale, not because your offer wasn't good, but because the customer couldn't see it.

This disconnect between your advertising and your storefront creates confusion. When customers click an ad for a specific offer, they expect to see that discount reflected immediately. Anything less feels like a bait-and-switch.

‍

The "Did It Work?" Anxiety

Even when customers successfully apply a coupon code, there's often a moment of doubt. Did the discount actually apply? Is the price I'm seeing the final price? Should I look for a better code?

This uncertainty kills the excitement of getting a deal. Instead of feeling happy about their savings, customers feel anxious about whether they're really getting the best price. That anxiety can lead to second-guessing, comparison shopping, or just abandoning the purchase entirely.

A clear customer experience strategy means showing savings upfront, not making people guess whether their discount worked.

‍

The Fix: Remove the Friction Entirely

So what's the solution? Stop relying on manual coupon codes altogether.

The most effective approach is to automate your discounts. Instead of making customers remember and type codes, use links that automatically apply the discount when clicked. When someone lands on your store from an ad or email, the savings should already be visible.

Tools like Adsgun make this seamless. Instead of showing an empty coupon field that triggers "hunt for a code" behavior, you can display strike-through pricing across your entire store—on collection pages, product pages, and in the cart. Customers see the original price crossed out next to the sale price, so there's no confusion about the deal they're getting.

This does a few important things:

• Eliminates the urge to leave and search for codes. When savings are already visible, there's nothing to hunt for.
• Removes checkout friction. No typing, no applying, no wondering if it worked.
• Builds trust through transparency. Customers see exactly what they're saving before they commit.
• Improves your Shopify conversion rate. Fewer steps mean more completed purchases.

You can also hide the coupon field entirely for customers who already have a discount applied, removing that "am I missing something?" feeling completely.

‍

Making Your Promotions Work Harder

The goal isn't to stop running promotions. Discounts are powerful; 90% of consumers use coupons, and 75% expect brands to offer them. The goal is to make those promotions visible and frictionless.

Here's what that looks like in practice:

• For email campaigns: Instead of including a code subscribers need to remember, send links that auto-apply the discount. When they click through, prices already reflect their savings.
• For social ads: Use URLs with built-in discount parameters. The customer clicks your Instagram ad and immediately sees discounted prices throughout your store.
• For site-wide sales: Display strike-through pricing on every product page. Don't make customers wait until checkout to discover they're getting a deal.

When you reduce bounce rate by showing savings earlier in the shopping experience, customers stay engaged longer and convert at higher rates.

‍

The Bottom Line

Coupon codes aren't inherently bad. But the way most Shopify stores implement them creates unnecessary friction that drives customers away. That empty coupon field at checkout? It's quietly costing you sales every single day.

The fix is straightforward: make your discounts visible and automatic. When customers can see their savings from the moment they land on your store, without hunting, typing, or guessing, they're far more likely to complete their purchase.

You don't need to overhaul your entire promotional strategy. You just need to stop losing customers to a system that was supposed to help them save money. Tools like Adsgun can automate this process, turning invisible discounts into visible savings that actually drive conversions.

Your promotions are working. Now make sure your customers can actually see them.