Tips to e-Commerce Conversion Optimization

1. Optimize Your Home Page

A majority of new customers will arrive at your on your website before they access your store. You want to make a lasting first impression. Think of the home page as the lobby to your business.

Most home pages to e-commerce stores are wasted real estate. Take advantage of your space and make some new conversions. You can transform your homepage into a valuable marketing asset by posting special offers and hot sellers.

Tweaks like these encourage users to follow a specific path to your website. Home page optimization gives you a greater degree of control over your users' experience.

Let's take a look at the e-commerce giant Amazon as an example:

Any time a user logs onto Amazon's website, he or she is prompted to sign in. There is also a "New to Amazon" link for new users.

To the right of the homepage, there is a list of the e-commerce giant's most popular departments. Every section of Amazone's website is optimized to lead clients into specific pathways.

If your website's homepage does not lead your clients down a specific path, you may end up missing out on a lot of opportunities. Promote some of your best selling products on your home page. If you have products that appeal to a broader audience, place a link on your home page.

Your home page doesn't need to be perfect, but it should direct your users to buy something. Design your website in such a way that there is a specific path that users can follow.

2. Simplify Your Product Categories

A study once indicated that 11 to 21% of e-commerce web users start their shopping journey by prompting searches. Meaning that the other 89% of users will find your products by browsing the website rather than searching. Without simple, logical categories, 89% of your users may miss out on hat they are looking for.

There are two types of online shoppers. They include the browsers and searchers.

• The searcher already knows what he or she wants.
  
  
• The browser isn't sure of the specific product he or she wants.

Players in the apparel industry need some finesse. This is a category where the look of the product is essential to sales. You need to layout your product categories in a logical yet sensible manner.

Do not miss out on 89% of your customers. Make it easier for users to access product categories from the home page.

3. Offer a Variety of Payment Options

While most of your customers will check out of the store using credit cards, some may prefer alternative order and payment methods.

Do not limit your clients to one payment method. Offer alternatives in online payment systems like PayPal.

If you are targeting shoppers from a region with its specific payment method, include it to expand your customer base.

If your store is local or regional, allow your customers to make orders via phone, fax, or email. When your customers live close to your physical store, you can offer in-store pickup and payment. Efforts like these will expand the options available to your client.

It may cost you a little to include alternative payment and pickup orders, but the benefits are significant.

4. Improve Each Product's Copy

An exceptional copy can double or triple the conversion rate of a landing page. In the same breath, an excellent copy could be all your product pages need to increase conversion rate.

Any kind of products can benefit significantly from an engaging and helpful copy. Some e-commerce sites use merchant-provided copies and product descriptions. Switch to a more personalized, effective copy, and improve your conversion rate.

Product pages should be a priority behind your home page and product categorization. Hire a professional copywriter to produce product descriptions that:

• Focus on product benefits over product features
  
  
• Use the key product benefits and selling points from customer reviews.
  
  
• Emphasize why the store is worth a purchase
  
  
• Make return and refund policies obvious and clear.

A right copy will paint a powerful image for your customers. Your copy should explain what your products do and why they are worth the purchase.

5. Use Videos to Your Advantage

Shoppers love product videos. An appropriate product video should capture the function, feel, and look of a specific product. If you sell products that are all about the experience, consider adding a demo video to the description page. Tweaks like these can greatly improve your conversion rate.

Product videos can eliminate a lot of customer uncertainties. A video can display a product's scale and size in a way that frozen images can't. If a picture is worth a thousand words, imagine the value of a video.

You can make the most out of your product videos. Focus on the aspects that your clients are most likely to care about:

• If a product has a specific function, show the product in action so that the customer can see it in action.
  
  
• Show the product in and out of its packaging—this way; the user knows what to expect.
  
  
• Address some of the critical concerns of customers. Concerns may include queries on design, usability, and durability. 

Product videos are priceless marketing assets. Post your product videos on YouTube and link them to your site. This way, you can generate traffic from shoppers searching for model numbers, product names, and review videos.

6. Provide Sufficient Information for Your Buyers

Uncertainty can ruin your chances of conversion. Eliminate doubt by providing all the information that a prospective buyer needs.

Show customers how long it will take before they can have the products in their hands. This should eliminate uncertainties over the delivery time. Display a clear price for each of your products. Avoid having hidden fees and last-minute shipping charges.

Specifics about size and proportion are a huge point of contention in e-commerce. Specify each product's dimensions and weight. Give as much accurate information as possible. It may seem trivial, but it will improve your conversion rate.

7. Simplify Your Checkout Process

Cart abandonment is a normal occurrence in e-commerce. You cannot eliminate cart abandonment, but you can reduce it by simplifying your checkout process.

You can simplify your checkout process by implementing the following recommendations:

• Use a persistent cart. The kind that lets shoppers return to your e-commerce site to checkout.
  
  
• Encourage users to register before checking out. You can automatically retain and prefill their information into checkout forms.
  
  
• Provide examples in every field. For example name: John
  
  
• Do not require registration as a requirement for checking out. About 26% of shoppers abandon carts when forced to register.

Optimize Your e-Commerce Conversion

Each e-commerce store has a unique set of weaknesses. For some, it is poor product copies, and to others, it is a confusing navigation system. Implement ting the seven strategies above can fix some of your weaknesses. Optimize your e-commerce store for conversion and sell more!