Changes You Can Make Today To Your eCommerce Website To Boost Sales

In a market that is quite saturated, you need to make sure that your eCommerce website stands out, in order to get some good results. Consumers looking to shop online have the whole internet at their fingertips, so if your site doesn’t load quickly or doesn’t make it easy for them to shop, then they can quickly click away and spend their money elsewhere. That is why as an online retailer, you need to be making sure that your site is not only easy to navigate, but that you have things in place that are going to help you to increase your website sales. 

If you are looking to improve website sales, and what you’re doing at the moment isn’t working, then read on to find out what you need to change or add to your website, to give sales a boost. These things can provide some instant results, but some will take time to build website traffic and then get that traffic to convert to sales. Being proactive in these steps will make a difference, though, so why not get started today?

Make sure your homepage is simple

When someone clicks on your website for the first time, it can be very off-putting to have a homepage that is all-singing-all-dancing and doing too much. Many think that offering a lot of products on the homepage is a good thing or having calls to action popping up all the time will help. However, for the homepage, it is best to offer fewer products but with more text description on the homepage, if you are looking to increase website sales overall. 

The reason that this approach works is because you are allowing consumers to focus on a couple of products and have any potential questions answered. When your homepage is simple but clear, it can give off a good first impression and leave the consumer wanting to find out more. Too much at once can put people off and leave them feeling confused about what you sell, rather than being clear on what your site is all about.

Use video content on key conversion pages

There is research that suggests that using video content on some of your top pages can lead to an increase in conversions by nearly 90%! Video content can help so much because it is quick and visual and our brains love some quick and visual content to process. If you want your customers to learn how to use a product or how it could be of benefit in their life, then video content really is key compared to written text. As video will be more effective than text, it shows that having video content on your site is vital if you want to convert to sales more.

Make it easy to contact you

When someone is shopping online, they often want peace of mind that your site is safe to shop at, as well as knowing what your contact details are should there be a problem with their order. Not only that, but even before making an order they can be keen to see what the details are, especially if they have a question about a product or a query over delivery. 

Having your contact details in a clear and obvious place is a must, ideally on every page. You should also have a specific contact section on your website where they can submit a query. If you want to take things to the next level to help answer questions and convert visitors to sales, then look into chatbot integration for your website. During office hours, or whenever you are logged on, you or a member of the team will be able to answer questions via a live chat option on your website. This can be important to help to quickly answer questions that can potentially lead to sales, as well as be such a good thing for your customer service. When your competitors don’t have this option, it will stand you above them which can only be a good thing.

Capture email addresses

Creating an email list is a must for any online retailer. Email marketing is something that is still very much alive and still works well as a method of digital marketing. It also produces a great return on your investment as it is something that is simple to integrate but can really pay off and lead to sales. The thing with email marketing to work is that you need to have email addresses! That is why creating ways to capture email addresses of visitors is something that should be a priority if you haven’t already. When you do this, you create an opportunity for the potential customer to come back to visit you through the information that you will send to them, right to their inbox. 

Of course, you can have a simple pop-up asking for their email address to be added to the email list. This can work, but the most effective method is having an incentive for the customer to give you their email address. Can you offer them a free download of a print or an eBook, depending what your online store sells? How about sending them a free postage code or 10% off their first order when they sign up to the email list? Whatever you choose, make the form to get their email address simple. The email could be enough, or perhaps a first name as well. If you’re asking for too much information, customers simply won’t bother.

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Build up trust through testimonials

There are a lot of online retailers out there who don’t fully understand the power of social proof. But if you don’t have a way for your customers to get to know you and see how trustworthy your business is, then you are missing out on something that can have great rewards. By simply adding a testimonials section on your website, or having quotes from previous customers on your page footers that change with each page, it can give the potential customer confidence in your products. 

It can also be a good idea to show images of you and your team, as well as any case studies about particular products, to help the people browsing your website to make a decision and purchase with you. As customers can’t see you face to face as they would in a store, it makes a difference for them to be able to put a face to the name, so to speak, and learn more about you and your business and how you got into business. 

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Create content that is suitable for your ideal customer

Creating content that is of good quality is a must for any online website. When you have good content it can help to increase website traffic, which is a step to an increase in sales, as well as leading to conversions. However, when you are a retailer, you need to think about who your ideal consumer is. If you have products that are based on millennial females, then the content that you create needs to reflect that, as that is what they will have an interest in and will keep them coming back to your site. You not only get to draw your ideal customers to your website, but you have the chance through the content that you create, to market yourselves as an expert in that sector, so it really is a win-win situation. 

Look to incorporate upselling

When you are in a traditional retail store, there can be items by the cash register that will encourage upselling, as well as the staff letting you know about different offers that are in-store that day. How can you do this online to help to boost sales? There are several methods, including having plugins that can showcase what items are frequently bought together, when on a specific product page, to showcase interest to the reader. If your customer is trying to checkout but they are only a small amount away from getting free postage, then the website should show this with a message, to encourage them to buy one more item. There are various ways to upsell but it is definitely worth looking to incorporate it. 

Perform A/B testing

All of the things suggested so far to increase sales are all well and good, but one of the best things that you can do for your website is to look at A/B testing once all of the changes have been put into place. All businesses are unique, and customers are too, so there are elements that are going to work well for you but not for others. When you look to use A/B testing, you will be able to find out the areas and elements that will work best for your retail website. 

Making some simple changes to your online retail website can make a difference to your sales. All things mentioned are not complex to integrate, so it is well worth the time to see what works for your customers and works to increase sales.