Many eCommerce websites are unwittingly making their customers jump through hoops just to give you their money. This happens when an eCommerce site is built by a technically capable team who don’t understand good marketing principles.
It creates an online shopping experience filled with too many steps and forms for the customer to contend with before they can make a purchase. This puts many customers off, and results in abandoned shopping carts and low sales.
To combat the problem you need to engage a digital team that is not only technically savvy, but are digital marketers too. First and foremost your team needs to know what it takes to make a sale online; which includes designing a website that is very user-friendly, conveys trust within the first few seconds of a visitor landing at the site, offers prominently featured and impressive images of products, and minimises the steps and barriers to making a purchase. This all ensures that shoppers are able to find what they want, and pay for it in just a few simple clicks.
The bottom line is that an eCommerce website should be optimised for sales. To ensure that yours is, implement these 8 eCommerce Website Success Factors.
Quick Load Time
It’s a sobering fact that you could lose 40% of your shoppers if your site takes more than three seconds to load. This means you have to be sure your digital team know all the tips and tricks for designing a site that will load quickly. Not only does a slow site discourage buyers, but it can also hurt you in Google search rankings too. Before you launch your eCommerce site, be sure to test load times with a tool like GTmetrix.
Mobile Responsive
55% of people now choose to shop from mobile devices rather than from desktop or laptops computers. This makes mobile responsiveness a ‘must have’ feature of your eCommerce website. Your website must be easily viewed on any device, and responsive design should include resized text that’s easy to read on smaller screens, changeable navigational positioning based on how the device is held, fewer images to boost load times, and enough space around links so thumbs can click them easily.
Easy Check-out
A recent study by MarketingSherpa estimated that 60% of customers abandon their shopping carts before checking out. One reason for this is a complicated check-out and payment process. One-page check-out is the solution to this issue. Conversely, if you require customers to have an account before buying, do that step first. Don’t let them get to the end of the buying process and then ask them to go to an account set-up page. Last but not least, make sure all fields in your forms are clearly labelled to help buyers avoid pesky error messages, if customers feel they’re being led in circles they’ll give up quickly.
Clear calls-to-action
The importance of clear calls-to-actions (CTAs) to the success of an eCommerce website cannot be overstated. To this end, a call-to-action should appear at least once on every page, whether that CTA leads customers to make a purchase or to gather more information. Your CTAs should be simple and to the point, and inspire your customers to act while also letting them know exactly where the link they’ll be clicking is taking them. There should be primary CTAs for making purchases, plus secondary CTAs leading to more information about products, services, and the company as a whole.
Secure Shopping
Customers will always check for the security of their confidential information like credit card data. It’s therefore critical to the success of your eCommerce website to ensure that their transactions are safe and secure. Make sure that your website has proper and valid SSL certification so that customers can carry out safe transactions.
Social Sharing
If you’re not using social sharing buttons on your site, you could miss out on huge returns. A number of recent studies have shown social media has a huge impact on eCommerce. For example, 77% of companies report they acquired customers through Facebook, and shoppers referred by Pinterest are 10% more likely to make a purchase than referrals from other social networks.
Product Reviews
Almost 50% of online customers read reviews before buying products. Since people will search for product reviews, your review page could help your rankings in search results. You’ll also claim ownership of the information rather than allowing a third-party review site to enjoy all the website views. Those reviews might as well be available on your eCommerce site to keep buyers in one place.
High Visibility Contact Info
Nothing frustrates eCommerce customers more than chasing a seller down to receive customer service. Having an email contact form at your website is fine, as long as it’s not the only option your customers have for reaching you. Be sure to include a phone number, email address, and mailing address in a highly visible place such as the footer of each page. If your eCommerce site is part of a larger chain that has physical locations, include location information so buyers can go straight to a store with concerns and returns.
Ultimately, embarking on an eCommerce project can be a daunting task. That’s why it’s important to find a digital partner you can trust to help you grow your business online. Here at Web Bureau, we have a proven track record in helping our clients move into the world of eCommerce and grow their sales online having worked with brands like Gordon’s Chemist, Harry Corry and Yankee Candle to do just that.
Our team will work with you to ensure your eCommerce website is manageable and profitable. This is not only achieved through creative design, up to the minute development, and innovative digital marketing, but by helping you plan all the behind the scenes aspects of your online shop too.
