Increasing your eCommerce conversion rate is an important step to fuel sustainable revenue growth. The average eCommerce conversion rate is between 2%-3%. You can determine yours by dividing your number of conversions by total website visitors then multiplying that value by 100.
If you’re looking to improve that number and grow your bottom line, consider implementing the following:
1. Conduct a Website Audit
One of the fastest ways to improve the customer experience and boost eCommerce conversions is to run a full site audit. There are many free tools you can use to comb through your site to locate any unnecessary code slowing you down and overloading your servers, the ideal site load speed is 3 seconds or less, if your site is running too slow that could cause friction throughout the customer journey.
Virid offers a free site assessment for retailers that includes a comprehensive analysis of your site for accessibility compliance, search engine optimization, performance, UX and more.
2. Implement A/B Testing
Always be testing. You can perform A/B testing with your marketing campaigns and copy to see what works best to use on your site. You can also perform A/B tests on the checkout page to see what design elements impact your conversion rate. It’s always a good idea to try something new to see if it makes a difference, something as small as the color of an “Add to Cart” button can make a huge difference.
3. Incorporate Live Chat Function
AI chatbots can be implemented to serve as live support to answer simple questions quickly. This feature can help remove friction for customers who are looking to familiarize themselves with your offerings before making their decision. Implementing a live chat function on your site can be tricky, but with the help of an agency or eCommerce consultant you might find that more advanced integrations result in a significant ROI.
4. Optimize Checkout
The checkout page is where the majority of customers abandon their journey and look to your competitors to find what they’re looking for. As mentioned before, design elements can have a significant impact on your conversion rate, the size, shape, placement, and design of the “buy” button alone could be the difference between lost customers and an increase in revenue. Think about how you can make the checkout experience as short and painless as possible, without any unconventional or unnecessary steps.
5. Offer Guest Checkout
Once your customer makes it this far, they might be ready to purchase but don’t want to waste any time entering their information when they don’t have to. If you’re looking to collect customer information, you can do so by incentivizing it. Offer a discount in exchange for your customer’s contact info to start the dialogue.
6. Feature Customer Reviews
One of the best ways to improve your product and your customer experience is to listen to what your customers have to say about you. You can offer incentives for customer reviews or simply send them a survey link to their email. Not only do reviews help to provide social proof for future customers but they can also offer valuable insight into what needs improvement or gaps that need to be filled.
7. Implement a Flexible Return Policy
When I’m shopping online, I tend to look at the return policy before I make a purchase. Customers want to feel secure when they make a purchase, and nothing hurts more than feeling like you wasted your money on a product that doesn’t suit you. A solid return policy is at the very least a competitive strategy, as it has become the standard for online retailers to offer reassuring return policies that help your customers to feel like they aren’t taking a risk when they choose you.
8. Strengthen Your Email Marketing
Email marketing isn’t just a tool for getting new customers, it can have many advantages. You can use email marketing to gather feedback from your customers, employ cross selling strategies, or to send abandoned cart emails with an incentive to capture the customers who are nearly ready to buy. The best part about these types of emails is they can be totally automated; and remember, the more personalized the better.
9. Personalize the Customer Experience
Speaking of personalization, studies show that personalization has a huge impact on the customer experience. At this point, it’s necessary to stay competitive. Personalization can be used to offer recommended products, tailored messaging and relevant special offers that push your potential customers over the edge. Personalization can be helpful too when used to focus on returning customers, who have already provided you with the insights to get started. Plus, returning customers require the least resources to reel back in.
10. Offer Loyalty Incentives
There are many ways to incentivize your customers to choose you, incentives can help inspire your customers who are looking for that extra push. This is a great opportunity to start a loyalty program that offers exclusive access to products or special promotions that aren’t available to anyone else. Loyalty programs give you insight into what your customers are interested in, and makes it easier for you to add value to the customer experience and keep them coming back.
Next Steps
There are many small things you can do to improve the customer experience and increase eCommerce conversions. You may be surprised at the little changes you can make that have a big impact on your conversion rate. Once you’ve implemented some of these strategies, it’s time to measure results. The only way to know how to improve further is to monitor how successful your strategy is and make adjustments as needed. Hopefully your eCommerce platform can handle the new traffic.
If you’re looking for more ways to improve your eCommerce conversion rate or need a hand with an advanced eCommerce integration, Virid can help. Our award-winning eCommerce platform marketAgility is the all-in-one solution to any of your complex eCommerce challenges and more. Schedule a consultation today to get started.
