Heightening E-Commerce Success: 1 of 2
The process of getting motivated customers to your site hasn’t gotten any easier. And once you’re over this initial hurdle, your site needs to be fine-tuned to make the path from browsing to buying as streamlined as possible.
Here are a few thoughts and ideas to help turn your e-commerce site into an effective sales conversion tool:
Make sure you’re up to speed.
If a landing page takes 3 seconds or more to load, you could be losing over half of your site visitors from the get-go. Today, your coding and hosting both need to be as optimized as possible in order to prevent some very quick and costly exits.
Show products in the best possible light.
The typical web-purchase decision is made in about a minute-and-a-half. For today’s more sophisticated online consumer, quality product photos and sharp-looking layouts are crucial to the buying decision. Other helpful display devices include alternate views and videos — both of which heighten interest and confidence in your products. In fact, product videos have been shown to keep visitors on a site longer, build repeat buying relationships, and decrease costly product returns.
Consider coupons to heighten impulse buying.
During 2014, it’s estimated that more than 50% of adult internet users will redeem an online coupon on the web or in a store. In many cases, the discount offer is the sole reason the customer made the purchase.
Tap into the power of third-party endorsements.
According to a recent survey, 85% of consumers now count on online product reviews to guide their purchase decisions on the web. What’s more these reviews are achieving a trusted status akin to recommendations from friends and associates. If your products are generating positive buzz via other websites and social media, make sure to repurpose these on your site.