Conversion rate is one of the largest pain points for eCommerce stores. A conversion rate is the percentage of users that take a desired action on your site. Maybe consumers aren’t buying the merchandise, or maybe products are left in an abandoned cart. Obviously, everyone prefers a higher conversion rate. A good conversion is between 1-2%. If you are not hitting those numbers or are looking to increase them even more, here are our top methods for increasing those rates.
Use an analytics software
Analytics can show you the who, where, and when of your website. You can tell if you’ve got any repeat visitors, how people found your website, how long they stay on the site, and which products have been left in an abandoned cart. Some of the most common analytics software include:
- Google Analytics – Not only does this show SEO, PPC, social media, referral, and direct traffic information, but you will be able to tell if a visitor is coming from a mobile device.
- HotJar – Creates a visual representation of drop off points for customers, as well as which places on the site customers are attracted to.
- Quantcast Measure – Displays psychographics, demographics, engagement, and traffic metrics.
- BigCommerce Analytics – A dashboard that displays traffic metrics, as well as providing order trends and creating merchandising strategies.
- Social Media Analytics – Tools that you can find on social media with business accounts. Use these analytics to adjust your strategy to direct your audience to your ecommerce site!
Analytics will give insight into the customer experience. There might be hiccups or hesitation in the guests’ experience that are causing a holdup in the purchase. This data gives you more than just an educated guess. It provides you solid evidence for a case to change part of your eCommerce website to adapt to visitors’ needs. If you see that people drop off the site in the checkout process, for example, then you know a revision should be done in that area!
Update your site
Is your site visually attractive to users? Your brand should uniquely identify who you are and what your company represents. Consistency is key to making customers feel comfortable. Websites that look safe, aesthetically pleasing, and are user-friendly cause the visitor on the site to stay longer. Here are some ways you can update your site:
- Take quality images – This will make your site both consistent and sharp.
- Use a live chat tool or chatbot – Create an optional interaction with customers as well as a funnel to direct visitors to your team!
- Display a security badge on your site (psst… look at the bottom right of this page!)
- Simplify your website design – Simplicity is key to making your website less overwhelming and easier to use.
- Add testimonials to your site – Create trust and credibility through others’ experiences.
Your updated eCommerce site should make your site seem more trustworthy and reliable. A cohesive, put-together look reflects well on the company, making the company seem organized, modern, and responsible. This is especially important in creating first-time impressions. The goal is to create as many repeat customers as possible!
Fix your checkout experience
It is extremely common for customers to divert away from the purchase during the checkout process. Your site might ask for too much information too fast. It might need some more information about the product return policy. Make your checkout less intimidating by:
- Allowing people to checkout as a guest – This will put people’s minds at ease because it gives them the option not to have their information collected, making your site seem more reliable.
- Separating the checkout into different segments – Asking for the address, email, phone, payment info, and more can overwhelm the customer. Take stress off them by separating the checkout into different segments.
- Adding a checkout progress bar – Creates a sense of progress throughout the process.
- Recovering abandoned carts – Remind customers of the items in their cart within a few hours or a few days. You can also create incentive by providing a coupon for the items within the cart. People get distracted easily online, so providing reminders and incentives should help you recover carts.
A smooth checkout experience should be engaging and welcoming. By allowing the user experience to be easy and personal, site visitors will feel appreciated.
Use social media to drive the right traffic to your site
Social media is a great tool to use, find, and direct your target audience to your site. As long as you know which social media platforms are best for your business, you should be able to help your target audience navigate from your page to your site. Here are some ways to drive traffic to your site from:
- Instagram – Use hashtags to reach your niche. Connect your ecommerce site to Instagram to generate sales directly using Shopify! Post relevant information, especially using reels, carousels, and videos when possible. Use a call-to-action in captions directing people to visit your site located in your bio.
- Facebook – Find your niche within Facebook groups. If you have a marketing budget, use Facebook ads and analytics to target your audience with a specific message to that customer segment. You should also utilize the ability to post website links.
- Pinterest – Utilize the title, description, and tags to get found on Pinterest. Use a visually appealing photo to catch attention, then attach a direct link from the post to your site.
- LinkedIn – This is especially relevant for B2B companies. Create and post blogs that create value for other companies on LinkedIn. If your content is useful to them, they will probably want to find out more about your company.
The greater percentage of the target audience finding their way to your site, the greater the chances of your conversion rate going up. Social media done right is the best way to make sure that your company is getting the attention it deserves.
Bottom Line
Your eCommerce site should be all about user experience. Your target audience should be attracted to the site by creating a strategy that draws attention to it. If visitors have a great experience, they are more likely to buy products. Whether you like it or not, visitors will make purchase decisions based on the ease of use and trustworthiness of your site. Above all, create better user experiences and a higher conversion rate by paying attention to user struggles, making the site easy to navigate, fine-tuning the checkout experience, and driving your target audience to your website!
Contact Backcourt Marketing today to start driving more traffic to your site with social media.