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eCommerce is a very challenging industry. The competition is extremely fierce and most goods are widely available to customers. This means that attracting buyers has become less about the products you sell and more about the overall experience you deliver.
So, the most important question to ask is: What can you do to improve your UX and boost your conversion rates? In this article, we’re sharing 6 best practices for eCommerce businesses.
1. Go Mobile
If you want your eCommerce business to thrive, one of the first things to do is optimize it for mobile devices. In the last 6 months, more than 60% of people who own a phone used their mobile device for online shopping.
If you want to take your eCommerce mobile strategy a step further, you might even want to make an app for your eCommerce business. A mobile app is a great way to personalize the shopping experience but it also enables your customers to complete purchases in just a few clicks instead of having to enter their credit card information whenever they make a purchase.
2. Keep Your Site Navigation Simple
If your website requires a lot of cognitive strain in order for visitors to find what they’re looking for, they are going to get frustrated and leave. That’s why you should ensure your website navigation is simple.
Start by simplifying your navigation bar and use best homepage practices to direct visitors where they want to go. Allow users to move through the product page with ease and track their behaviour in order to provide them with personalized product recommendations.
3. Improve Page Loading Speed
According to a recent study, nearly 50% of users expect a web page to load in 2 seconds or less. Just a one-second delay can reduce your conversion rate by 7%, causing your eCommerce website to potentially lose $2.5 million in sales in just one year.
Here are some of the most important elements to consider if you want to improve your page loading times:
- Reduce server response time;
- Reduce the number of plugins;
- Minimize HTTP requests;
- Enable browser caching;
- Reduce redirects;
- Enable compression;
- Optimize images;
- Prioritize above-the-fold content;
- Optimize CSS delivery.
4. Create Great Product Descriptions
As you might already know, product descriptions are very important. A study by the Nielsen Group showed that on a full Amazon page, customers tend to spend less than 20% of the time on viewing images and instead focus on the text.
SEO product descriptions are even better, which is why you should focus on creating descriptions that are valuable, informative, but also optimized for search engines. Considering the fact that many eCommerce sites (i.e. your competitors) will simply copy product descriptions from the manufacturer, optimizing yours for SEO could give you a significant competitive edge.
5. Write Blog Posts Regularly
If people aren’t on your eCommerce website, they obviously can’t spend any money. Chances are, they aren’t shopping online every day or even every week. Only your most loyal customers might come back to check out your store once a month.
As a result, one of the most important things to do is finding ways to attract customers to your site. By running a blog that offers useful advice and valuable information, people will have a reason to return to your website on a weekly or daily basis. And once they are on the website, they will be more likely to make a purchase.
6. Send Cart Abandonment Emails
Did you know that nearly 70% of shopping carts are being abandoned by users? Sending abandoned cart emails might be able to help reduce this percentage. According to statistics, 45% of abandoned cart emails are opened, over 20% are clicked on, while half of the users who clicked decided to make a purchase.
Sending these emails allows you to stay relevant and fresh in the minds of users who abandoned their carts. You can offer them a small discount if they decide to complete their purchase or ask for feedback about the reason why they dropped their shopping cart.
Final Thoughts
Even though there is a great number of eCommerce best practices that you should be taking into consideration, the six strategies listed in this article should be a great starting point. By incorporating them, your online store should soon begin to see improved traffic and increased sales.
