2020 saw e-commerce take an enormous leap forward, due to the covid pandemic forcing many physical retailers to close for a large portion of the year. Many people browse through websites as a digital form of window shopping, with no intention to buy but there are surefire ways of grabbing the attention of these casual visitors and encouraging them to make a purchase from your online store.
Here are four ways you can improve your conversion rates.
Effective Filtering
While some visitors will go to your site with a fixed item in mind and use the search function to find it, in most cases people will click onto your site without knowing exactly what they’re looking for, preferring to scroll through your category pages. This means your site needs to be split into clear categories that engage the user.
But these categories often consist of multiple pages of products which can overwhelm the consumer and cause them to click away. This is why simple and effective filters matter. Common-sense ways to pare down the content are the way to go, based on values such as price, colour, size and user rating. It makes the shopping experience smoother for the visitor and much more likely to convert them into customers.
Learn From Physical Stores
Physical stores place their products carefully, with certain items at the front of the store and others further back. This is a powerful engagement tool and can be employed just as effectively online.
Look at the products that pop up immediately on your front page or at the top of each category and decide which items should be pushed forward. It’s often best to highlight the most popular and affordable products but you can also push sale items to the front to add extra appeal or the newest items to keep on top of current trends. Be sure your database keeps out of stock products at a low profile to avoid disappointing the consumer. You can even apply dynamic arrangements to your inventory for each potential customer, giving a personalised experience based on their preferences and previous selections.
Use Product Recommendations
On each individual listing page, it pays to suggest other products the viewer might be interested in as well, or instead of, the item they’re looking at. This keeps the customer engaged and keener to click ahead as each page can lead to a different opportunity, rather than a dead-end. It’s vital to keep these suggestions relevant to the previous item and other products they’ve looked at.
Focus On What Works
Of course, the most important element in all of this is to keep track of what works. Use data pulled from page views, clicked links and purchases to work out what the most effective marketing strategies are. Sometimes, a certain item might cause customers to click away from your site, or a seemingly unrelated product could prove surprisingly popular. The more data you track, the better you can make the shopping experience for future customers.