How to Improve the Conversion Rate of Your Ecommerce Website?

Ecommerce is one of the most competitive niches in the world today. There are huge players in the market, and it makes competing much more challenging than in other industries. When it comes to ecommerce, CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) is a vital part of the process.

CRO is part of the bigger SEO process that is focused on getting high conversion numbers. Ecommerce as a niche is more focused on conversion as it is much more cost-effective than acquiring new traffic. High conversion rates are a sign of healthy ecommerce brands and affect the ROI significantly.

The key to optimizing conversions is to understand that it is a continuous process and not a one-time deal. Small, incremental improvements to the process can significantly improve revenue. In this article, we will take a look at conversion rates in more detail.

Understanding Your Current Conversion Rate

First, we need to understand what conversion rates are. Simply put, conversion rates are calculated by dividing the total number of conversions by the total number of sessions (or visitors) and multiplying it by 100. If you’re facing challenges calculating this accurately, there are tools like Google Analytics that can help.

It is important to calculate conversions over a period to establish a baseline. The ideal time frame would be over 6 months, so it can account for seasonal fluctuations. It is important that you segment your traffic according to various sources so you can identify which sources bring you the most traffic.

Understanding where your conversion sources come from can also help when you want to spot potential usability issues. For example, if there are noticeably lower conversions from your mobile app than from your website, then the app might need updates.

10 Tips to Improve the Conversion Rate of Your Ecommerce Website

1. Ensure High Loading Speed

One of the most straightforward ways of improving conversion is to improve the loading speed of your website. Ecommerce websites are bound to have images and videos. They need to be compressed as much as possible without affecting their quality. Browser caching these assets can help make loading quicker for repeat customers.

Minifying website code is a step that can considerably increase loading speed. Minifying code consists of removing all white space and other unnecessary formatting options to make the code “leaner” and easier to store. Using Content Delivery Networks can considerably speed up loading times.

Use hosting services that have been rated highly because they can make a difference when it comes to loading speeds. Get rid of render-blocking code that prevents pages from displaying quickly.

2. Simplify Navigation and Search

Navigation and search are central to the success of any ecommerce website. The navigation should be as simple and clear as possible. It should follow a consistent and logical layout with proper categorization that shouldn’t overwhelm the user. If your website has extensive inventory, consider using drop-down menus along with category levels.

The search bar should feature prominently on your website and be positioned right at the top. A majority of users are going to be clicking on search every time they visit your website. It is critical that you implement intelligent search functionality.

Smart search can show users the products they want, even if there are spelling errors. It can also show them related products, which can make comparison easier. For navigation, make sure that you add a deals page that users can click to get the best deals on your website.

3. Create High-Quality Visual Assets

Imagery is a central part of the whole ecommerce experience. The quality of images is what helps you stand out against your competitors.

Ensure that you have high-resolution images of all the products on your online store – there should be no compromises. The best way to do this is either to request high-res images from the brand or shoot your own images.

When shooting images or videos in-house, ensure that you have a professional photographer doing it. Otherwise, the results will turn out badly, resulting in a poor user experience. Ensure that there is a zoom function on all images because people will use it for better viewing, especially on mobile devices.

If possible, ensure that your website has an Augmented Reality (AR) product experience or at least a 360 view. It elevates the shopping experience and is bound to improve purchase decisions.

4. Craft Compelling and Scannable Copy

Written copy is a vital part of what gets people interested in products on an ecommerce website. The goal here is not to be verbose but to help the audience understand why they should buy a specific product.

Ensure that the headlines on product pages are benefit-oriented. Reading a headline should help the user understand what’s in it for them. Another aspect of “selling” to the user is to make the copy more customer-centric. Refer to the user through the use of “you” and “your” rather than third-person pronouns like “we” and “our”.

Last but not least, make the copy easily scannable. Use enough heading variations and whitespace so users have enough “breathing room” through content. While it is important to include keywords in your copy, the most important part is writing it for humans.

5. Build Trust With Social Proof

Social proof is a powerful driver of conversions to any type of website, but especially for the ecommerce niche. It is easy to understand why it is that way. The first thing we look for when we’re buying something is what other people say about the product.

Ensure that your website displays genuine customer reviews and ratings without any bias or deviation. It is a good idea to have a small subtext highlighting if they’ve bought the product before reviewing it, as it lends extra credibility to the review.

In the review section, allow users to upload photos, as this forms an important part of the social proof mechanism. It is a good idea to add testimonials to the product page to ensure even better visibility. Lastly, take the time to respond to reviews and do so professionally, even if the reviews are negative.

6. Create Clear and Powerful CTAs

Call-to-action phrases are a vital part of conversion numbers for an ecommerce brand. It urges the user to take action depending on the context of the link or button. There are more than a few things that you should remember when adding CTAs on your page.

The first and most important part of creating an effective CTA is that it needs to be persuasive. A verb-first mode of creating CTAs will have the most success with users. “Click this link”, “Get your copy”, and “Buy now” are a few examples of frequently used CTAs.

It is important that you leverage your CTA’s design to be more visible. It could be using a more striking color palette, upsizing the font, or ensuring there is adequate whitespace around the button. Having the more important CTAs above the fold can get you more clicks.

7. Offer Multiple Payment Gateways

When it comes to ecommerce, the more payment options you have, the easier it is for users to buy. Keeping this in mind, ensure that you have all major debit and credit card options available to the user. Visa, Mastercard, and American Express should be the minimum requirements for your payment gateway.

In addition to traditional payment methods like credit and debit, it is also important to include digital wallets. Digital payment wallets have been quickly gaining popularity – PayPal, Apple Pay, and Google Pay are the most popular options in this niche.

Ensure that you add the logos of all payment gateways that you’ve added to your website. The payment page must be secure and use the latest in encryption technologies (SSL) so people feel safe using it. Finally, test the payment page exhaustively to ensure there are no hitches in the process.

8. Push Offers and Promotions to the Front

Every ecommerce website needs to have offers and promotions to improve purchase volume. The problem with offers is that most of the time, users are not aware of them. It is a good idea to have a dedicated “banner” space on top of the website to display promotions and sales.

If you have offers specific to a product, ensure that it is highlighted right on the page. It is a good idea to add delivery offers where the user clicks to add a product to the cart. Do note that shipping costs are a primary reason for most cart abandonment issues.

It is a good idea to use delayed pop-ups as a mechanism to capture emails by highlighting a first-time discount. People are keener to share their details as long as there is a discount involved.

9. Implement Exit-Intent Pop-Ups

While pop-ups are not the most customer-centric choices in the world of website design, exit-intent pop-ups have been reasonably successful.

Exit-intent pop-ups are activated when the user clicks back or away from the website. In essence, exit-intent pop-ups are a last-ditch attempt at salvaging the sale by offering a discount to the user.

Exit-intent pop-ups can be annoying if not used properly. For example, if the copy for the pop-up is long or overly verbose, users are going to click away regardless. Another instance where it can be detrimental is when these pop-ups happen prematurely, even when the user hasn’t clicked away.

Testing can go a long way to determine the right parameters for the pop-up. The length of time before it should activate, the pop-up copy, and other aspects can be answered by a thorough A/B testing phase.

10. Ensure a Flawless Mobile Experience

Last but not least is a responsive user experience on mobile devices. As we all know, the majority of web traffic has gone the mobile route. To get the best out of your ecommerce website, you need to adopt a mobile-first strategy. This ensures that everyone is able to access the content without any issues.

The mobile version of the website should have scaled-up navigation elements and buttons so users can tap them more easily. Another area that you should pay attention to is website forms. Having forms that are too long can be detrimental to the mobile user experience.

It is vital that you compress images and videos even more because the display real estate is much smaller than on a desktop.

Measuring Success and Key Metrics

Metrics for an ecommerce website are critical to its success. The more metrics and KPIs you have access to, the better your chances of optimizing them for success. Track as many aspects as you can, including sessions, product views, cart abandonment, checkouts, and purchases.

Understanding the positives and creating solutions for the negatives will be an ongoing process when it comes to ecommerce. It is also important to track vital website metrics like loading speed, keyword rankings, bounce rates, and other SEO related KPIs to ensure long-term success.

Key Takeaways

• Ensure the website loading speed is high, especially for pages with a high number of images and visual assets.
• Create high-quality visuals to accompany the products. The images or video should ideally be created in-house
• Add social proof in the form of reviews and testimonials to the product page to increase trust in potential buyers.
• Craft persuasive and clear CTAs that can help guide users to the next step of their buying journey.
• Offer multiple payment gateways so users have options to choose from.
• Promote key offers through banners and exit-intent pop-ups so users are aware of them.
• Track and monitor key metrics as an ongoing process to ensure improved performance.