American ecommerce sales continue to climb, with an expected increase of 8 to 12 percent in 2017, according to the National Retail Federation. Ecommerce growth is outpacing overall retail sales growth, which will increase around 4 percent this year. Mobile commerce is expected to exponentially increase through 2020, Business Insider reports, when it is expected to account for nearly half of ecommerce sales.
With more of your customers shopping online than ever before, creating a pleasant and easy digital retail experience for your business helps you stand apart from competitors. Here is how to improve your ecommerce store, with advice offered by six top experts in the space.
Ecommerce Store Tip #1: Optimize for Mobile
From Jennifer Lonoff Schiff, Founder of Schiff & Schiff Communications:
Now that you know how important a mobile-friendly ecommerce store is based on shopping trends, making mobile the star of your ecommerce design efforts is imperative. Schiff points out conversion rates increase as load time is reduced, and vice-versa. Online customers have short attention spans, which means instantly capturing their attention on any device is vital.
How to Do This for Your Business:
Design for speed and ease of use on mobile. Every component of a site, from product pages to how a shopper can get in contact with you, should be easy to find and navigate. Text and photos should be readable without having to pinch and zoom. Ordering from you on a smartphone should be secure and hassle-free.
Ecommerce Store Tip #2: Show off Security
From Neil Patel, Founder of Crazy Egg:
Identity theft and ecommerce fraud are significant concerns for shoppers, as Patel reports 17 percent of ecommerce cart abandoners leave a store because they’re wary of the site’s security. Adding proof of shopping security to a site can help increase conversions, whether it’s by displaying the badge of a well-known security logo you use on your site, or by explicitly outlining the security you employ in a prominent security section.
How to Do This for Your Business:
Create easy-to-understand messaging about the type of security your ecommerce store employs, and feature it throughout marketing materials that represent your brand, including social media sites and blogs. Make sure security measures are clearly explained during the check-out process to help put customers at ease that their private and payment information is safe.
Ecommerce Store Tip #3: Clearly State User Benefits
From Morgen Newman, Co-Founder of IdeaPaint:
It’s probably likely that you have competitors who sell similar services or products. Simply displaying what you sell and hoping that buyers will come is not enough. Clearly conveying the value-add your brand offers is important. Display what pain point you’re solving or what emotional value your brand offers to customers to make it more appealing.
How to Do This for Your Business:
Use customer data to identify effective messaging, and showcase that on your homepage. Use heat map research to see what portions of your current website engages customers the most, and apply those qualities elsewhere in your store. Use captivating imagery to evoke emotional responses.
Ecommerce Store Tip #4: Use Videos for Product Showcases
From Bryan Lovgren, Co-Founder of TrustaFact:
In addition to emotionally compelling imagery, video is a great medium to use to convey the values of your products or services. Use videos to demonstrate products and form a visual connection with shoppers. Besides serving as attractive content within your store, videos can also be repurposed for your YouTube page to improve your ecommerce store’s search engine optimization.
How to Do This for Your Business:
Create videos showing off popular products or services, especially for ones that might feature intricate details or warrant additional explanation for customers. In the video, be sure to highlight the benefits of the product or service or demonstrate how it can be used so shoppers can visualize themselves with it. Transcribe videos when uploading to video sites like YouTube, so hearing-impaired customers can learn about what you’re offering, too.
Ecommerce Store Tip #5: Upsell Products
From Ivan Kreimer, Growth Marketer at Receiptful:
Just like a salesperson in a physical store would present shoppers with complementary products based on what they’re browsing, upselling online is a way to increase revenue and deliver more of what your customers want. Provide services or products that can enhance what your customer has added to their cart. Be sure to focus on offerings that are well-reviewed and highly relevant.
How to Do This for Your Business:
Identify potential upgrades in each product or service you’re offering, and present those when someone is in the buying process. By allowing a shopper to configure what they’re purchasing based on their unique needs, they might spend more and be more satisfied with what they’re buying. Be sure to add some messaging about the benefit the upgrade has for the product.
Ecommerce Store Tip #6: Collect Great User Reviews
From Graham Charlton, Editor-in-Chief of SaleCycle:
Charlton reports that more than 60 percent of customers read online reviews before purchasing. If your website is devoid of reviews, potential shoppers may abandon your site altogether. Besides increasing conversions on your site, reviews of your products or services provide search engine optimization benefits.
How to Do This for Your Business:
While you want reviews on your ecommerce site for the reasons mentioned, having too many negative reviews defeats the purpose. Offering an incentive to leave a review, such as a chance to become a prize winner in a drawing, may increase the likelihood of the reviewer showing positive sentiment. If you gain a positive comment on your Facebook page or another social network, you can follow up with the poster to leave a review on the link to the product page. Make the review process easy and simple, by asking for a numerical rating along with a place to leave comments, for example.
Get the Merchant Solutions You Want From North
From the best in security to protect your business and your customers, to a variety of customization features to perfectly fit your brand, North’s payment solutions allow you to implement best practices and increase sales. Contact us for a free consultation on what we can offer your business by calling 877-840-1952. Or, contact us here.
