Just as in a typical brick-and-mortar store, customers who visit your online retail store can leave without making any purchase. However, the average eCommerce conversion rate is significantly low compared to that of traditional retail stores. This is because many ecommerce strategies focus solely on optimizing for conversions and forget about customer experience optimization. It is a common mistake to think that customers will come back time and time again just because you make it easy for them to purchase products.
Average eCommerce Conversion Rate
According to a Forrester Research study, the average eCommerce conversion rate is just 2-4% while brick and mortar stores have an average of 5-12%. What’s worse is that ecommerce companies tend to lose customers along their buying journey. It has been reported that on average 33% of users abandon carts before making purchases online!
eCommerce Conversion Funnel
Let’s take a look at the eCommerce conversion funnel and see where exactly the most common mistakes are made by companies in this business. The customer journey begins with the main page of your website, which is your product landing page or category landing page (if you have a lot of products or categories). Then, your prospect moves to their shopping cart page (with a 40% chance), followed by the checkout and payment confirmation pages. Sometimes the exit point between the shopping basket page and the checkout is an abandoned basket – after you have added products to it, but before checking out.
ECommerce Strategies for Improving Your Conversion Rate
Here are the main strategies for improving your eCommerce conversion rate and optimizing it with a focus on customer experience.
1. Communication with Customers
When visitors land on your website, you should be able to provide them with relevant content that will help them make a decision regarding their purchase. Give them all the necessary information right away to avoid further contact (and possible losses), and provide social proof, which can persuade customers to become buyers. An eCommerce strategy that includes communication with customers is very important for your business, because it can significantly increase your sales.
2. Offer Free Shipping
Fewer people will buy from an online retailer who does not offer free shipping. If you charge a delivery fee, your prospects may opt to purchase from a competitor instead. For example, Amazon offers free shipping on all its products and that is one of the main reasons why millions of customers shop there. When it comes to eCommerce conversion rates, offering free shipping is as important as having a quality product line.
3. Review Your Product Images
Product images are very important for your online store because they influence customer decision-making. If your product images are not clear and do not show the item to be sold in detail, additional questions may arise that will cause visitors to leave your website. Consequently, if you fail to answer these questions, your conversion rate will take a hit.
4. Understand Your Customers
It is essential for online retailers to take some time to understand their customers and find out what exactly they want. This knowledge is crucial for creating a perfect eCommerce strategy that will allow you to reach your target audience. If you keep asking yourself “who wants what” when it comes to eCommerce conversion rates, then you are doing the right thing.
5. Use a Helping Hand
Outsourcing is not something you hear about very often in eCommerce, but there are some interesting solutions that can come in handy. For instance, if you strictly follow an SEO eCommerce strategy to increase traffic and sales on your website, this may become too much for one person to handle. With the help of SEO, you can significantly increase your conversion rate and sales.
6. Don’t Forget About Security
It is important to emphasize the importance of security when it comes to eommerce conversion rates. You should make sure that all payment information – card details in particular – are encrypted and cannot be accessed by third parties without permission from the customer.
7. Send an Email When the Customer Makes a Purchase
Sometimes you simply forget to send an order confirmation email or coupon information, which can decrease your eCommerce conversion rate significantly. It is very important for customers to know that their orders are in progress and what to expect after they pay for them. This will make customers feel more secure and increase the number of orders on your website.
8. Don’t Overdo it With the Discounts
It is tempting to use deep discounts to attract as many customers as possible, but keep in mind that price is not always the key factor for eCommerce conversion rates. You should also consider other important aspects, such as the design and usability of your website.
Sunvera Software develops next-level software applications from start-to-finish. We are a premier software and mobile app development agency specializing in healthcare mobile app development, custom mobile app development company, telehealth software, sales dashboards, custom mobile app development services, retail software development, supply-chain software, ecommerce, shopify, web design, iBeacon apps, security solutions and unified access software.
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