DANGER: E-commerce pitfalls ahead!

As the global spend online continues to grow you surely want to benefit from consumers willing to part with their money in exchange for your products/services?

If you already have a web presence in the form of an e-commerce website you must free your mind and realise improvements can always be made, no matter how big or small, and this can be the tipping point as to whether a customer buys from you or not!

So consider these ‘danger areas’, think about how they can be afforded. The ‘danger areas’ can be easily dealt with but in order to deal with them you need to be made aware of what they are, even if they do seem very obvious you need to act on them. Some common e-commerce web design mistakes that you may want to address are:

Incomplete product details: One of the most common e-commerce danger areas. A products detail heavily influences the customers purchasing decision, so it needs to be there!

Old design: A complete turn-off for customers! Your e-commerce website needs to be fresh, appealing to your target audience and user friendly. This can be achieved with very little investment, but it’s well worth it.

Payment methods: Don’t limit the customer to a select few payment methods. Customers want choice, why limit them, they will only do business with someone else. More choice = less abandoned baskets.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): For an e-commerce store to survive in quite a hostile competitive environment good SEO is essential to drive traffic, thus sales. Poor SEO leads to poor rankings and the loss of potential customers. A little investment can see a big return on investment.

Contact details: A bit like ‘payment methods’ detailed above, it’s all about giving the customer choice. However choosing not to provide the potential customer with contact details, in a variety of forms, can damage the credibility of a website. Be open and honest with your customers and give them a choice of how they would like to contact you.

Keep it simple: There is nothing worse for a user than having to wait for a page to load. Keeping your e-commerce store simple is vital and will ensure the potential customer has the time they need to make a purchasing decision. Bear in mind current broadband speeds and don’t overload the page with unessential detail. Keep to the key selling points and you will be successful.

These are just some of the common danger areas that you must address to make your e-commerce store more successful. The online e-commerce world is changing – it’s not just about having a store online anymore, it’s about having a great one!

Attract traffic through SEO.

Engage your potential customers with the right information.

Convert potential by giving the customer choice.

Benefits of a multi-lingual website

A survey by the British Chamber of Commerce details that nearly 70% of all SMEs aren’t exporting, or are ever likely to be. Some more compelling information from the European Commission, in a survey, found that 9 out of 10 EU internet users agreed that given a choice, they would prefer to visit a website in their own native language.

So, it begs the question: Are you missing out on the opportunity to export and sell your goods and services in other countries?

The proof is already here as to whether it is ‘worth your while’ to invest in a website, or websites, that offer different languages.The Fast Track 100 list from The Times will show you that an increase in language offerings will help grow business. And the more you look at the facts, the more obvious it is that businesses, especially those looking to grow overseas as part of their strategy, should be getting involved with the foreign language internet.

As multilingual alternatives grow your potential market share overseas will decrease, acting early will see you achieving a higher ROI simply
because there is less competition at present. It makes things like reaching the top of the search engine rankings easier and much more cost effective.

What traffic source generates the best conversion?

‘SeeWhy’ conducted a study on a sample of 60,000 e-commerce transactions to analyze the origin of the people that added items to their basket. This study shows that e-mail brings the most traffic with 56.8% followed by Direct traffic with 17.9% and 10.3% with for Search. Social Media provided only 4.3% of traffic while picking up the rear was Display Advertising which managed only 1.7%.

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‘SeeWhy’ then studied the origin of those who had completed their purchases on the site. Not surprising then when they discovered the best conversion rate is up e-mail with 67.37% followed by Direct with 23.68%. Search Engine Marketing (SEM) and Display, two sources of traffic charge, contribute 1% of the traffic conversion.

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Don’t think that SEM and Display are useless, and to remove them would be more foolish, consider them as part of your overall strategy. Just because the user didn’t buy first time it doesn’t mean they won’t the next. It makes sense not to put all your eggs in one basket.

The rise and rise of m-commerce

The medium by which users purchase using their mobile phones is a trend that continues to rise, and will continue to do so in the future. There are a number of reasons why this trend will be here to stay. However, as with most things, technology and infrastructure can slow the rate to which this trend rises down.

With this rapid growth and increased usage of smart phones for more ‘everyday’ activities, such as shopping, booking tables at restaurants and socialising through social network sites, consumers are demanding more and more from companies, and in particular retailers, with an m-commerce channel.

A recent study, by eDigital Research, shows that although many e-tailers, although already held in high regard, are struggling to meet the higher demands of consumers and their expectation when it comes to technology and the use of mobile applications and websites.

With the rapid growth and increased usage of mobile phones for every day activities such as shopping, consumers are now demanding more from retailers’ m-commerce channels.

According to the research even e-tailers that offer a simply, and sometimes limited, mobile solution such as a ‘click and collect’ service were also said to be missing out on a huge potential revenue stream.

Derek Eccleston, Research Director at eDigital Research, said: “As more and more people begin to use their smart phones to shop and browse online, it is crucial that retailers begin to operate in their customers’ spaces, developing mobile sites and investing in mobile strategies as consumer behavior continues to evolve.”

Although Derek made a fine point, the secret of success is to have a multi-channel strategy and to keep as many commercial doors open to the consumer as possible.

Reviews – The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

In a recent study to find out more about the shopping experience on the internet today, which is increasingly linked to the use of social networks, 53% of 2000 consumers would have published a review on a product within 30 days of purchase. The review, whether positive, negative or indifferent, would help other users with their buying decision.

32% of consumers have a better opinion of branded products following a positive review. This is mainly because a brand already has a reputation, stigma or an emotional tie to it. So the review, in theory, adds weight to this.

It’s not just the review that can swing a certain product in to being a favorable purchase for the user, it’s more about where the review comes from and by whom the review is written by. The credibility of the review is paramount, users prefer a review from your ‘real’ customer rather than by an ‘expert’ (commercial, journalist, celebrities etc.). However using an expert to support a product can also be an added benefit.

Lotus Renault GP Store uses PayPal Express Checkout

By integrating the PayPal Express Checkout in its tunnel command i-BOUTIK meets the expectations of even more e-tailers eager to increase the conversion rate of visitors purchasing. For the user PayPal Express Checkout is very easy to use and allows them to make a purchase in 3 clicks by avoiding re-keying information, such as address, billing address and shipping, or means of payment.

If you’ve read the blog ‘Why customers abandon their online baskets’ you’d know that one of the reasons that people do abandon their baskets is ‘impatience’. Adding the Paypal Express Checkout gives the user choice, as well as quickening the ordering process for the customer. In return Lotus Renault GP increase their conversion rate and has a happy customer.

It’s a win win scenario.

Access the world through your mobile phone

The mobile phone is becoming smarter and quicker year on year, and will start to play a bigger part in all of our lives. Whether you start making purchases, accessing information or simply booking a reservation at your most loved restaurant, this is all possible right now and some people don’t even know it yet. There will be a time, in the not too distant future, that everyone will. People and businesses will come closer together, more local and more relevant.

The ‘humble’ mobile phone is set to become the most widely used portal on the plant.

Take a look at the figures for yourself, they make exciting reading.