Running an ecommerce store is no simple task, there’s a lot to think about, from your website design and marketing, through to dealing with your stock levels, shipping and monitoring your competition. With so many factors to consider, it’s likely you’ll face a number of problems on your way to ecommerce success.
Whilst it sounds scary, unfortunately there’s no escaping the fact that issues can arise and they could have a huge impact on your business. Luckily with a thought out plan you can combat these issues, giving your customers a great experience and ultimately help boost your sales.
Poor Images
When people are buying online they want a clear view of what it is they are getting, without the option to pick up an item, hold it and inspect the details, it’s hugely important that your website has great product photos. Small, unclear photos taken from one angle on a smartphone won’t cut it these days, your customers expect better. Which is why you need to be including high quality photos, with multiple angles and the ability to zoom on your website, these images not only give your customers a view of your products but also can make your site look great.
Low Conversion Rates
There’s nothing worse than knowing that people are finding your website, browsing your products, yet still leaving your website empty handed. If this is the case, it can be easy to panic, however you do have options. Using analytics tools such as Google Analytics you can gain an insight into who is browsing your website, when and how they might be doing so, allowing you the chance to identify where you might be going wrong and helping you know how to make improvements.
Abandoned Shopping Cart
Cart abandonment is essentially when your customers have added an item to their shopping cart yet for some reason decide to leave your website before the payment process is complete, something often related to the checkout process. If your checkout is too complicated, unclear or doesn’t look secure, it’s likely customers will leave and head to your competition instead. By offering a simple checkout that clearly tells your customers what to do, how long they have left to complete and also illustrates shipping costs from the beginning, your customers will be less likely to abandon your cart.
Unoptimised Product Pages
One of the most important elements in ecommerce and in website in general, is how well you have developed and written your product pages and descriptions. It’s important that your pages are optimised with both your customers and search engines in mind. Without content that includes keywords and relevant information and phrases it can be hard for search engine robots to check for information and will not rank your website in search engine results. Make sure you know what information you need to include to help your website rank and help your website get found online.
Selling online isn’t going to work 100% of the time, there’s always chances of issues and problems, as with any business, however these issues don’t have to be the end of the world, with a careful plan and a thought out website structure, you can be combatting these issues and growing your business in no time.
