Expecting to generate business for your eCommerce store just by driving high-volume traffic is like hoping to catch a mouse using an open-ended cage, pointless!!!
Don’t get me wrong. Neither driving more traffic is any less of importance nor an eCommerce lead is a mouse.
But an eCommerce website with a miserable conversion rate is definitely an issue that needs to be addressed at the earliest if you want to drive more revenue from an eCommerce business.
As an online store owner, conversion rate continues to be one of the most important metrics to gauge the real performance and competitiveness of your marketing campaigns, products and service designs.
What do you do then?
Simple. Conversion rate optimization (CRO).
Before I unravel the Top 7 CRO techniques that will instantly boost your eCommerce site conversions, let me be sure that you are well aware of some basic definitions first.
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What is the Conversion Rate?
Conversion is said to have happened when a visitor completes the desired action on a website.
The “desired action” comes in different forms based on your CTA; making a purchase, subscribing to a newsletter, requesting a quote, creating an account to name a few.
For most cases, conversion for an eCommerce website is identical to making a sale.
Now, understand what is eCommerce conversion rate?
It is the percentage of site visitors who purchased from your online store and got converted into a buyer in a given time frame.
Let’s say, in a month, 10 out of 1000 visitors purchased from your site then you are at the conversion rate of 1%.
Folks at Omniconvert suggest that with all your might if you manage to touch the 2-3% conversion rate mark, it’s a pretty good start. (Given that the average eCommerce conversion rate lies between 1% and 4% in 2021.)
Your obvious response is how?
Right here comes Conversion Rate Optimization. It has got numerous tools and tactics that help boost the conversion of stray traffic into paying customers.
So let me now introduce you to the most effective CRO techniques that you can implement today for a greater percentage of conversion.
Top 7 CRO Techniques to Boost your ECommerce site conversions
1. Superior UX/UI for fulfilling customer journey
Right from the moment the customer discovers about your products’ existence to the time they make a purchase, you have the opportunities to offer an effortless shopping experience, provided your website has some outstanding UX/UI.
Simple methods to improve your site’s performance:
- a) Google says– As the page loading time goes from 1 sec to 3 secs the probability of bounce increases 32%. Thus, it’s always worth testing the website’s loading speed and opting for a high-performance hosting plan to hold the attention of the visitor.
- b) Make good use of multiangle high-resolution shots, product-in-use images, close-up product videos, explanation of features, working, and benefits with impressive voiceover. This will eliminate any potential confusion among the shoppers.
- c) Adopt responsive and mobile-friendly designs that can do away with the need to resize or scroll endlessly. ca did the same and boosted conversion by 20%.
- d) Have an awfully designed website and visitors ain’t coming back to you. Whereas, good aesthetics, decluttered interface, neat information architecture, readability, etc. ensure superlative CX.
2. Shopping as smooth as a gliding
Blend convenience and transparency of eCommerce with the service and immediacy of the brick-mortar store for meatier conversion rates. Confused?
Think of it as this way-
With multiple systems and channels, purchasing on an eCommerce website might get sticky. To ensure that the visitor moves quickly through the sales funnel and convert, reduce the steps and offer frictionless experience.
In short, always remember to make it easier for the visitors to pay you.
Some effective hacks-
- a) Painless navigation is a fundamental right of online shoppers!! Make sure your eCommerce site offers one. Remove any elements that add layers. Structure and showcase products such that visitor finds the desired products in an easy and time-efficient manner.
- b) Optimized check-out page has all the elements needed by the customers to make informed decisions- visual progress indicator, top and bottom check-out buttons, credit card logos, security seals, tab to continue shopping, create a wish list, and the list goes on. BTW, a faster check-out process increases conversion by 66%.
- c) There is a reason it is called CTA (Call to action). It instantly lets the user know what to do and how to interact with your site. Your CTA should preferably be colorful buttons, above the fold, relevant to pages, eye-catchy and crisp.
3. Copy that converts
It’s high time that eCommerce website copy gets its due.
Copy is the reflection of your brand. It conveys product information to visitors who want to know how your product will change their lives. So, ineffective copy means poor conversion rates. Period.
Some actionable copywriting tactics :
- a) You obviously know your products inside-out. But the visitors don’t. So, make sure to optimize the product description for utmost clarity. Give out every single detail that informs about the full scope of the product without being wordy.
- b) Write and format attention-grabbing copy. Place most crucial information on the top. Wherever possible, replace wordy paragraphs with a bullet list. Organize information category-wise in separate tabs. Make lavish use of power words and action words like breath-taking, reliable, shake, kick……..
- c) No, you do not have sound like a rocket scientist. Instead write in simple and colloquial language that humans can understand without having to use a lexicon, oops! a dictionary.
- d) Make sure to optimize the on-page copy for search engines and rank higher. SEO and CRO are the gears that when mounted together correctly increase both the traffic and conversion rate for your eCommerce website.
4. “Only a few items left” Trick
In general, it’s a FOMO for some really generous offer.
Maybe the shoppers know this is just a marketing tactic, but it still manages to evoke a sense of urgency and scarcity in them.
Creating urgency helps eCommerce businesses overcome slower purchase decisions by shoppers arising due to a greater variety of products.
There is a melange of such hacks- limited-time discounts, limited stocks, “coming soon” sales, early-bird offers, free shipping for limited shoppers, special discount hours, and many others.
P.S. Done authentically, it can boost conversion rates. Done poorly, it can break customers’ trust forever.
5. Answer Questions before they are asked
No matter how “stellar” is your website, customers’ views about online shopping are often stigmatized by perceived risks and uncertainties. Understanding and addressing these apprehensions proactively help them overcome their fears.
Here’s how-
- a) Let them know that you’re a legitimate store and are equipped with all the security measures through SSL, trustworthy payment options, security badges, etc.
- b) Instil confidence that you have got their backs in case they want to return the product. Have clearly defined and convenient policies to ease the process of return and refund.
- c) Free shipping has become a bare minimum that you must offer either directly or indirectly by tweaking product prices.
6. Cart Abandonment Software: Turning curse into a blessing
Cart abandonment happens when a shopper adds items to the cart but does not purchase and leave before the checkout process.
Abandoned carts hurt! But that’s how it is.
The good news is, there are some awesome software solutions available to help you revive your chance of selling and save lost revenue.
How does it work?
Abandonment software works when an online shopper adds an item to the cart, shares an email address, and then leaves the store.
The software captures the email and directs it to an automated email marketing sequence that shoots follow-up emails with cart content to the user as a slight push. It can also incentivize the purchase by offering discount coupon codes.
7. A/B tests
It’s an iterative process involving repeated testing and improvements cycles done consistently. Here you test different variations in design, content, and site functionality in a way that works best for your consumer behavior and conversion goals.
Although the A/B test is not a one-shot method and may not deliver massive results at first, it significantly improves customers’ experience. And this gradually translates into better conversion rates and greater loyalty. For example, something as simple as redesigning A/B test for webpages spiked the conversion rates by 21% for Crazy Eggs.
Bottom line
Customer rate optimization is less about you and more about your customers.
The extent of work that goes into constantly adapting to changing customer behavior seems a little overwhelming.
Thus, rather than making multiple optimization changes all at once, you can start with simple hacks and gradually get into more drastic changes.
This way your CRO strategies will become much more manageable, measurable, and effective.
- Top 7 CRO Techniques That Instantly Boost eCommerce Site Conversions - October 21, 2021