Is your e-commerce business in the red or teetering on the edge, but you just can’t figure out why? Does it feel like you’re facing a business death by a thousand little things that are out of your control?
We’ve all been there, and nine times out of ten the answer lies in something we overlook: having the right information about your e-commerce site and your audience. Data, both broad and about individual customers, is likely what you need to avoid common e-commerce mistakes and address any problems unique to your business.
Success doesn’t just come from learning what data you’re missing, but requires you to take some immediate actions. That’s why at Red Stag Fulfillment, we’ve put together this infographic guide to help you review your e-commerce operations and plug gaps that may exist. Let’s look at some of the big areas where you could lose customers (conversion, cart abandonment, and a poor UX) and where you might be facing mounting costs without realizing it (credit card fees, return costs and delays, and shipping costs).
The good news is that many of the issues raised below can be fixed quickly. Allowing for PayPal payments, adding cart abandonment follow-ups, posting your returns policy, highlighting testimonials, and much more are straightforward and ready to be implemented.
Testing 1…2…3…
American audiences are some of the most fickle e-commerce shoppers, because we have a large group of companies to buy from, and sometimes we can get the same products from multiple vendors. That means you’ll need to be among the top destinations, so putting the user experience first is a necessity.
The best way for you to know if your customers are enjoying your website is to test and review everything. Walk through the entire process before launching any new features and review every element of your site routinely to ensure that nothing is broken and everything is operating as it should.
This is important for everything from adding to your shopping cart and checking out to clicking on images for a larger view or to see if a product is in stock.
The U.S. Is Mobile
Foot traffic to local retail stores is down 57% since 2010, but people in the U.S. are buying more and paying more. Much of our buying is shifting to digital storefronts, and 34% of that online action is happening on smartphones, according to Google.
For your e-commerce store, that means a mobile-friendly website is a must-have.
That 2 a.m. impulse buy is just as important as any other, but it’s most likely to happen on a mobile device. Your website is your opportunity to be there exactly when your customers need and want you, without any additional effort on your part.
And do you know the best news of all for targeting mobile devices? Mobile design best practices can improve conversion rates for desktop users too because they prioritize visibility, reduce the length of forms for everyone, and highlight features like security options that increase trust in your brand right away.
Check out our infographic below to learn about these changes you can adopt and some of the other areas where you might be leaking money, but can fix it today.