What causes Low Conversion Rates on eCommerce sites and How to Fix it

 Conversion rates is when a visitor goes from clicking onto your eCommerce site to becoming a customer. Conversion rates are measured by this percentage. High conversion rates means increased online revenues while low rates means that there is something that needs fixing.

 

Any eCommerce store that receives a high number of visitors but is not getting sufficient sales from these visitors, the cause needs to be investigated. After all, there may be somewhere along the sales funnel where customers are being lost. If you can find where and you know what needs to be done to fix it, there’s no reason low conversion rates cannot be improved upon.

 

There are many reasons why eCommerce sites may have a low conversion rates. The most common of these include a lack of customer support, no product reviews, higher than expected shipping costs, inaccurate product descriptions, no product photos, slow loading pages, higher product pricing than what your eCommerce competitors are offering, unsecured payment gateways, products that are routinely out of stock, and an unfriendly navigation experience leaving it difficult to find the products a customer is looking for.

 

In order for any eCommerce site to succeed, low conversion rates like these need to be resolved as soon as possible. The #1 reason why eCommerce sites fail are because of low conversion rates. Needless to say, this is not something to mess around with. By making small changes, success is possible. The process of making these changes is called ‘conversion rate optimization’, employing techniques to make the eCommerce experience more shopper-friendly. When successful, over time, conversion rate optimization can be directly responsible for higher conversions, more customers, and better revenues.

 

Developing an eCommerce site, significant attention should be paid to product pages. Each product should receive its unique page with photos, an accurate product description including specifications, customer reviews, and should have a fast loading speed. A product page should also include call-to-actions (CTAs). The key to a successful eCommerce product page is in providing all the answers and information the visitor wants. If they are well-informed about a product and its advantages, in addition to have CTAs strategically placed, a user is more likely to feel inclined to buy. Consider including limited time gift codes, discounts, or free shipping offers for first-time purchases, especially if you need something a little extra to get going.

 

Also, what more eCommerce sites are doing are adding product videos, including how-to guides and reviews. Recent studies have shown that product pages with videos have up to a 174% higher likelihood to convert views, when compared to text-based descriptions and still images.

 

Past the nuts and bolts of the product page, it’s also important to keep the eCommerce site experience navigation-friendly. Visitors need to be able to easily find the products they are looking for. The checkout process should be short, as in one or two pages maximum. There should be no requirement of ‘becoming a member’ or ‘sign up for a newsletter’. Checking out should be kept simple.

 

As an expert eCommerce marketing and web design company, Unlimited Exposure knows what it takes to create an effective online shopping experience. Conversion rates are the lifeblood of eCommerce success, and a necessity for any company looking to survive and surpass the competition. If you are running into trouble converting shoppers into buyers, connect with one of our representatives today.