There are many recommendations for how to set up your online shop so that it meets the expectations of shoppers in your industry. For example, you can try lots of options for reducing your bounce rate and boosting conversion. Here are ten tips for getting the best conversion rate out of your checkout process.
Plus, there are some industry-specific tips and tricks for helping your e-commerce business boost its conversion rate.
Optimising conversion rates: tips for online fashion retailers
Here’s how you can boost your conversion rate if you’re operating an online clothing store:
Tip 1: Help your customers find the right size
When customers leave an online clothing shop without buying anything, it’s often because they’re uncertain whether the clothing sizes are right for them. Be sure to include a size table that gives precise details about the measurements of each garment type. For example:
Pants: Waist size and leg length
Outerwear: Arm length, chest and waist size
Shoes: Sole length and in-step size
Gloves: Hand size
It’s also helpful to specify whether a particular item is designed for a loose, normal or tighter fit. Try including the height and weight of the model shown on the product page, as well as which size they’re wearing. This helps your shoppers to visualise how the clothes will fit them.
Tip 2: Join the sustainability trend
Sustainability is a growing concern in many industries. For fashion, sustainability is not just about using environmentally friendly materials; it’s also about ensuring fair working conditions for those who make the clothes. Shoppers want to be sure that the clothes they buy are not manufactured under harsh labour conditions in countries that do not protect workers.
The way you deliver your shop’s clothes is another important sustainability topic in the online fashion business. Even though most shoppers prefer free shipping and returns, this has a significant impact on the environment. Consider phasing out plastic packaging materials. The size table also helps cut down on unnecessary return shipping: if shoppers know exactly what size to expect, they will be less likely to order the same item in multiple sizes and then return the sizes that don’t fit. This helps you not only to protect the environment, but also to reduce your company’s return shipping costs.
Tip 3: Use social commerce
New online clothing shops are popping up every day. You need to raise your shop’s profile in order to increase the conversion rate for your clothes. Social media is perfect for this. Try advertising on relevant social media platforms and try to get some fashion bloggers and well-known influencers on-board with your brand. They’ll generate a lot of traffic for your shop.
It’s also a good idea to connect your fashion label’s social media account directly with your customer service. Many potential customers use the comments section under your social media posts to ask questions before they visit your shop, like:
‘How long does it take you to deliver?’
‘Is this jumper also available in blue?’
or ‘Where can I buy this outfit?’.
Monitor these questions and answer them regularly. That way, you’ll build trust amongst your potential customers and encourage them to buy from you.
You should also keep in mind that so-called m-commerce is increasingly important for online fashion stores. This means your online shop needs to be just as user friendly and interactive on a mobile device, and built to work quickly, like an app. That’s because more and more die-hard shoppers are buying through their smartphones now. Use progressive web apps (PWAs) to create a user-friendly mobile site that minimises cart abandonment and boosts conversion.
Boosting your conversion rate for online electronics retailers
Here’s how you can boost conversion if you’re operating an online consumer electronics shop:
Tip 1: Take part in sales days and special holiday promotions
There are plenty of international sales days throughout the year when shoppers hunt for bargains on electronics, such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Electronics are also popular presents during the holiday season. Find out which items are really popular right now among your business’s target group and be sure to advertise those items in particular during sales and holiday periods.
Tip 2: Offer a warranty
Many shoppers still prefer the security of buying their gadgets directly in a store rather than online. Conversion rates for electronics lag often behind high-street shopping because eCommerce retailers are less likely to offer warranties. Customers like the idea of having a ‘real-life’ person they can return to in case their electronics break down and need a repair. Strong customer service is the best way to build trust among your shoppers. Offer them a warranty and make it as easy as possible for them to return items to you in case anything goes wrong.
Tip 3: Choose the right shop system
Online electronics shops face specific challenges. These include the many different shipping methods and costs that electronics retailers have to offer. For example, while it’s possible to ship a microwave as a parcel, a refrigerator has to be delivered by a transport company. Plus, it’s common to offer customers additional shipping-related services, such as:
disposal service for old appliances
in-home delivery
installation service.
Depending on which shipping methods you use, you’ll also have to offer different return shipping options. A good shop system helps you to overcome the challenges you face as an electronics retailer. That’s why it’s important to find a shop system that lets you group products into different categories. After that, the system takes care of everything for you. Based on a product’s category, your shop system will automatically select the right shipping methods and additional services to offer the customer.
Selling food online: How to increase conversion
Here’s what you can do to boost conversion if your online shop specialises in selling groceries and food items:
Tip 1: Offer flexible delivery windows
Increasing your online food business’s conversion rate starts with precisely defining your target group. There are lots of different types of buyers in the eFood market, such as:
double-income households
seniors
families
businesses
childcare facilities.
This makes the delivery window an important factor. Double-income shoppers are often too busy working, so they don’t have time to go grocery shopping. They don’t want to have to plan their shopping to far in advance, and they don’t want to be stuck at home for hours waiting for a delivery to arrive. That’s why you should offer as much flexibility as possible for your shoppers to choose the delivery window that suits them best.
Tip 2: Offer click & collect
Not all customers prefer to have their food items delivered to their door. Some prefer the convenience of online shopping, but still like to pick up their order in person at your store. This enables them to scroll through your product range in the comfort of their own home. It saves them the time and hassle of searching through items on the shelf. It’s also beneficial for you, because it means you don’t have to have every single item in stock when your customer places their order, as long as you can fill the order on time.
Tip 3: Simplify repeat purchasing
Many online grocery stores still require customers to start over from scratch each time to want to place an order. This is an unnecessary waste of time. Most people who buy groceries online will tend to order the same products over and over. There are certain items that almost always appear on a grocery shopper’s list, such as:
toilet paper
milk
bread
eggs.
People may still wish to go to a local shop rather than order online for less commonplace items that they need at the last minute. That’s why it’s important to give your customers an easy way to select common items that they’ve ordered in the past. This is a great way to boost conversion. Give your customers a one-click solution to reorder the same items as last time. Or offer them a list of suggested items based on their order history. It’s also helpful to let you customers save a shopping list on your site. Let them create multiple lists too. For example, one list for items they want to order every week, and another list for items they only need to buy monthly.
Optimising conversion for an online home furnishings store
Here are some tips for increasing conversion if you’re running a store that specialises in home furnishings and furniture.
Tip 1: Set the scene
When you advertise furnishings online, its a good idea to picture not just the item itself. Create a scene where you display the item alongside other furnishings. This helps your shopper visualise how the items will look in their own home. And it might even spark their interest in some of the other items you include in the picture. Be sure to also include links on the same page to the other items shown in the picture. For example, include a section under a heading like ‘Create the entire look’ or ‘Make the look complete’. Try also presenting the furnishings in different styles of decorating to appeal to a different range of tastes. This helps you adapt classic designs to new trends and increase your conversion rate using the same seasonal product range.
Tip 2: Show details
When people visit an online furniture shop, they cannot…
… feel the upholstery.
… smell the leather.
… identify the wood grain.
The colours shown on their screen may also appear differently than they do in real life. To increase your conversion rate, be sure to show your customers everything you can, right down to the finest details. Your shoppers want to know whether a piece of furniture has exactly the features and details that they are looking for. Especially with large pieces like a sofa, which often involve hefty shipping costs, so no one wants to have an item delivered only to find that it’s not what they had in mind… and then have to fuss with return shipping. Invest in some high-quality camera equipment to create detailed images. Show your customers the furniture from all different angles and at different distances, and zoom-in close so they can get a true sense of the texture of a fabric or surface. Product videos are also an excellent way to let your customers more fully experience your products.
Tip 3: Send samples
Shoppers like to know how a product really feels before they buy it. That’s why they want to be able to see and feel a fabric in real life before deciding to purchase an expensive item like a sofa online. The solution is to send them a free upholstery sample. This is a benefit not just to your customer, but also to your shipping department. It’s sure to cut down on the amount of returns you deal with because your customers have at least had a chance to check out the upholstery in real life before deciding to buy the sofa. And fewer returns also means a higher conversion rate for your business.
