Are you thinking of selling products online? When you create an online storefront, your goal should be to entice visitors to take action before leaving, preferably by exchanging their hard earned dollars in exchange for your products or services. Every single element of your website can and should contribute to this main goal.
Here are 10 tips to help ensure that your online store will succeed:
1. Get the right traffic.
High conversion starts in getting the right people to your site. Focus your marketing efforts in reaching qualified traffic – visitors that are genuinely interested in your products. Plan how to reach your target market and make them come to your website.
2. Sharpen your landing pages.
Visitors are not always arriving on your homepage. Many come to your site via your category, product or other interior pages. Check your web statistics and find out your main landing pages, and make sure you review and test the elements of these pages.
3. Get your web pages ready for the sale.
Your goal should be to turn your visitors into buyers. Your homepage should load quickly, and it should be clear as to what you are selling. Give adequate information about the products you offer in your online store, so customers can have a clear idea of what you are selling.
4. Build customer confidence.
Your website needs to convey trust and credibility in order to instill confidence in the shopper and make them buy. Demonstrate that you are a real business. Give customers information on how to contact you. Include an “About Us” section on your website.
5. Give customers signals of protection and safety.
One of the lingering fears of customers about online shopping is the safety and security of their personal information – and this fear increases hundredfold with small websites. To counter the fear and give customers the assurance that their information is safe with your website, use secured socket layer (SSL) encryption.
6. Clearly specify your return policies.
One of the most common barriers to buying on the Web is the difficulty in returning items. Big companies such as Gap and Circuit City use their physical store networks to make it easy for their customers to return items that they purchased online. Small merchants do not have this advantage. To increase your sell-through rates, it is important that your ecommerce store clearly state your return policies. Specify who will pay for the return shipping; whether any restocking fees will be paid; what items are eligible for return and what items cannot be returned; as well as acceptable item condition.
7. State your privacy policy.
One of the essential components of building trust online is treading carefully when it comes to privacy. More and more consumers are demanding that Web businesses specify clearly how their personal information might be used or shared.
8. Entice customers to buy.
If you study the top ecommerce sites, there are several elements that they commonly use above the fold on their homepages – their best selling products, products for the season, special promotions or hot new products. All of these elements have one clear goal: to grab customers’ attention and make them interested enough to go into the site and buy these products.
9. Improve product presentation.
Lead customers to your sales funnel. Make it easy for visitors to use and buy from your site. Invest in great photography and write compelling descriptions and sale copy for your products. Always give your customers a reason why they should buy the product.
10. Maximize after sales opportunities.
If you sell on the Web, the best way to increase the likelihood of repeat purchases is to treat customers well after they place their initial order. Maximize cross-sell opportunities. Give customers incentive to buy from you again using techniques such as discounts and coupons. Consider return and money-back policies.
For more tips on selling online and succeeding in ecommerce, read the article “How To Sell More on the Web: 30 Tips To Increase Conversion Rates For An Ecommerce Site”
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Great list! I always tell others that your goal should be to monetize every visitor to you site. This can mean a lot of things. Not everyone will buy on their first visit, but can you get them to sign up for your newsletter or to receive promotions? Can you send them to a partner site for a referral fee? Can you at least get them to bookmark you and come back later? Maybe even click on an advertisement…
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