5 Common Mistakes that Hinder Ecommerce Success
There are always a few mistakes that are common among eCommerce retailers. Left unchecked, these mistakes will hinder profits and success.
The worst thing is that the owners of these eCommerce shops are not even privy to these mistakes. Years can go by before they realize the errors that they’ve made and how much money they lost in the process.
These mistakes, if you’re aware of them, are relatively easy to fix. We’re going to talk about these errors and how you should go about fixing them.
- The checkout is too long
The checkout page should be clear, concise and smooth. If someone is on the checkout, they are ready to buy. If you have an unhealthy amount of people who bounce from the checkout page and never return, then there is something amiss.
Shorten the amount of checkout pages as much as you possibly can. If the process to buy your product is exhaustively long, people will get frustrated.
Companies like Amazon are a testament to this. Look at their popular “1-click checkout”. They realize that people want to pay as soon as possible, without any excessive hoop-jumping and requirements.
You’ll see many retailers forcing their customers to fill out information before they buy (usually by registering on the website). But if you can, give the customer the option to register after they purchase. What’s more important: Getting the sale or taking their information? Pursuing the sale is, and always will be, the most important goal. Why make it hard for you and your customers?
Your goal is this: Expedite the sale. There is a point of diminishing returns when it comes to the length of the checkout page.
Make the process as simple as possible to facilitate the sale.
- Checkout instructions are unclear
Be direct and clear in your checkout instructions. Don’t use any language that can be misconstrued. If you want someone to fill out their credit card info, then it should be obvious to the customer what you need them to do.
If you’re having trouble closing sales once someone lands on your checkout page, make sure that every element and item on the page is clear.
- Poor product descriptions
A good product description is usually 75-250 words. It entices the readers with benefits. It’s easily readable.
A good product description compels the reader to purchase. Droves of eCommerce retail shops are plagued by poor and ill-written product descriptions, which repel potential prospects.
A successful product description can turn technical details into attention-grabbing benefits. The details about the product tell the prospect what he absolutely needs to know. The benefits tempt him to purchase.
The word count for the description should rarely exceed 250 words, so you don’t have a lot of space to convince the prospect to buy. This means that you should only include product details that are relevant to the customer.
- Weak photography
The photographs of the product need to be high quality. Customers want high resolution, interactive images. They want to be able to zoom in or enlarge the photo. They want to be able to rotate the image and see it from multiple angles.
High quality photographs remove questions from the buyer, and it will also inform him on what he is going to buy, so that there are no surprises once he receives the product at his door.
Weak photography, on the other hand, will hinder the success of your sales efforts. You’ll get more returns from unsatisfied customers; your prospects will be less willing to buy because they won’t be sure of what they’re purchasing.
- Lack of analytics
Your analytics should tell you everything you need to know about the performance of your eCommerce store. Every eCommerce store owner should know:
- Where the site’s traffic is coming from
- The percentage of new visits that the site receives on a daily basis
- Pages per visit. On average, the amount of pages the visitor will land on
- The bounce rate. This is the amount of time spent on the page before exiting
- What page does the visitor exit from? Is he exiting from the checkout “Thank You” or “Success” page, or is he exiting before that?
These are all things you need to know because they will help you make adjustments and optimize your site’s performance.
In the past, we have recommended WooCommerce (and we still do) because of these extensive tracking options.
You can’t fix a mistake if you’re not aware of it. Take the blinders off today and take your eCommerce store to the next level.
