It is established that if you want to ensure that a good portion of people visiting your website does not leave the purchasing process midway, you need to provide a decent shopping experience to the users, amongst other things. You spent thousands on building your website, but what good is any of this if you don’t make sales. Traffic alone won’t cut it. We all know that, don’t we?
Even as businesses strive daily to create a lasting impression on their visitors, many of these efforts go in vain. If you are sailing in the same boat, know this: conversions do not come easy. Leads are not easy to find, especially when the world is overcrowded with e-Commerce options. Let’s find out what’s causing people to leave your e-Commerce website without buying.
Your Content Structure Is Bad
It’s not always about finding the right words to say. It’s also about structuring your content in the right places. Do not distribute content across too many pages, if it can all come under the same page. If your visitors are leaving without converting, maybe they are not reading the important stuff just where they should. Statistics reveal that 50% of sales are lost when potential consumers do not find what they are looking for. When a piece of content can be placed on the first page, do not shift it to the inner pages.
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Costly or Slow Shipping
When most of your competitors are providing free shipping, if you charge high prices for shipping, there is a chance that you will lose the customer when he or she becomes aware of the extra cost. Also, a user indulging in an impulse buy may choose not to buy a product if you are unable to deliver it fast.
Long, Confusing and Annoying Checkout Process
Almost 30% of shoppers reported abandoning their carts because the checkout process was too complicated, so it’s a good idea to walk through your website on a regular basis to test its usability. Sit down with a friend or a potential customer and watch them try to complete a transaction on your website.
- Try to reduce the number of pages a customer has to navigate to complete a purchase.
- To speed up the process, only require customers to provide essential information to process the order, and make all other fields optional.
- Make sure that return policies, your contact information, and other important details are easy to find.
The checkout process has to be simple and easy. If the users need to fill lots of information and if the forms are lengthy, many users may get turned off. Also, checkout spread over pages without clear progress indicators can be a major annoyance to shoppers. Similarly, if any charges are sneaked in during the final stage of the checkout, the user may feel cheated and abandon the cart right there.
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Lengthy Payment Security Processes
One of the biggest pains in online shopping is jumping through the hoops of payment processing. Not only does the user need to enter the CC/DC or other payment-related information, but he or she may also need to enter a One-Time-Password to validate the transaction. If the process breaks (page crashed or incorrect information) and the customer needs to go through the entire cycle again, there is a chance that you will be left facing an abandoned cart.
No Sign of Customer Support
Although most online shoppers don’t need the help of some employees from the e-commerce store, there are times when chat or call support can be the difference between a sale and no sale. Ecommerce sites that do not offer customer support stand to lose the custom of dithering, borderline buyers.
Lack of Proper Navigation
An e-commerce store that doesn’t have intuitive navigation makes it impossible for the user to find what they are looking for. A ‘search’ button can help the user out in this situation, but if these features are not functioning smoothly, or if they do not exist, it becomes difficult for the users to locate their desired items. In this case, they will bid your store adieu.
Lack of Security
While more people around the world are opening their minds to paying and buying online, the fear of getting cheated out of their hard-earned money lurks at the back of online shoppers’ minds. If the website ‘looks’ shady, or if the users don’t find your e-commerce store trustworthy, there is a good chance that they will leave without buying anything.
- Ensure SSL certificates and safety logos are visible.
- Show a list of the different payment methods you accept to give your checkout a professional look.
- Include customer testimonials and reviews throughout your website.
- Remember, your checkout should always run on HTTPS when you’re taking sensitive information like payment details. If people don’t see that little padlock, then they’ll probably run a mile.
No Competitive Pricing, No Market Research
Competitive pricing is one of the most important factors determining if a customer buys from you. Owing to the availability of the internet, it’s now very easy for customers to compare prices and choose from numerous alternative retailers for a particular product.
One study suggests that 36% of online shoppers will leave a site in favour of another if they find the same product at a lower price. It’s important to know your competitors and do adequate research into the market to determine the demand for the products and the lowest price at which you can afford to charge for them.
Not So Social
Having social media accounts can also be a vital factor in enhancing an eCommerce website’s credibility, especially taking this era of social media into consideration. When an eCommerce website has no social media presence or if there is a lack of social media activities, customers don’t feel the enhanced level of trust and connectivity.
Great post!
Sadly, many website owners know nothing about conversion optimization.
When traffic gets to your site, how many are you able to convert?
As much as all the point noted are great, if you are getting the wrong visitors to your site, it’s not going to convert, and many web traffic are a wrong fit for your business.
Alway see web visitors are human beings, not some robot.
So, if they are human beings, what is the type of human beings you would want to have as customers?
This is where it all starts.
Sadly, many people need visitors, they tend to rush to get every type of visitors.
In most cases, 1K traffic can be better than someone with 20K traffic.
The quantity is important but more important is the quality.