Common Online Retail Issues and How to Fix Them
Stay-at-home orders and health concerns have put many businesses in a position to move in-person products and services to an e-commerce platform. If you're not very experienced with it, online retail can be—well—tricky business! Here are a couple of tips and tricks to help you fix common online retail issues and land more sales.
Cart Abandonment
Shopping cart abandonment is a big issue for small companies who want to achieve more sales. However, it is important to understand why your customers are deserting their carts. With this information, you can better plan for how to solve the following problems.
There are two main reasons why customers don’t make it past the “cart summary” page. First, many customers abandon their cart because they are worried about putting their credit card information in—this may be because they are unfamiliar with your site and therefore don’t trust you having their credit card information. To mitigate this issue, make sure that your website is set up professionally so that customers trust it more. Second, others abandon their cart because the total summary ends up being more expensive with shipping and tax than planned. To solve this, try offering free shipping or other promos.
Shipping and Logistics
As a small business, it is quite a challenge to meet customer's expectations when it comes to shipping rates and logistics. Thanks to big businesses, customers nowadays expect their orders to be delivered in two days. But this can be nearly impossible for startups or small businesses. Furthermore, offering your customers free shipping may also be out of the picture for a bootstrap business venture. So, what can you do to improve customer loyalty and satisfaction without placing unreasonable expectations on your business?
The first thing to try is to negotiate shipping costs with several different carriers. Don’t just go with the one that is closest or easiest. If you want to offer lower shipping rates to your customers, you will want to take the time to scout out the cheapest option. Second, speed up shipping time by implementing a highly efficient shipping process. Really, you should try to get it in the mail as soon as possible, no matter the costs.
Website Interaction
The way in which your customers interact with your online retail platform matters a lot. If your customers are getting frustrated trying to find what they want, or if merchandise is not adequately organized, they are going to find a new brand to buy from. Make sure to format your website so that nothing is more than three clicks away and apply many different filters to help your customers sort through the merchandise and find what they want with ease.
No matter your strength as a business owner, it's a stressful time right now. However, if you follow this advice, you will be able to land those sales and keep your customers happy for years to come.
Need help in making a brand transition? Check out our Work From Home resources or schedule a Discovery Call with Robyn today.