There’s a very obvious reason why some e-commerce stores are more popular than others, and it’s got little to do with the quality of their products. The modern-day consumer can be very demanding, and your website has to be able to respond quickly to their needs. That can be a very real challenge. However, there are some basic features and resources that every e-commerce site needs to have if their owners hope to start making sales. If you’re launching a new e-commerce venture for the first time or your current online store isn’t performing as well as you hoped, here are the must-haves that you may be missing.
Guest Checkout Option
Not everyone wants to sign up for an account or a profile with your company. That’s a fact that you’re just going to have to get used to. Allowing for guest checkout means that those customers can buy what they need without any hassle, and that’s only good news for lowering your shopping cart abandonment rate.
In-Depth Product Pages
It’s not enough to have a couple of pictures and some brief technical info about your products. Consumers now do their research, and they are going to want as much information about your products as you can provide. Use high-quality images, break down the costs, have an automated ‘availability’ update, and any relevant sizing charts or ‘how to use’ video guides. Never underestimate the importance of your product pages.
Faster Delivery
If there’s one thing that every online buyer wants these days, it’s a shorter time between placing an order and having it delivered. If you’re still handling all of your shipping yourself, then your product delivery will be considerably slower than it needs to be. Look at using a product fulfillment company that can make one- or two-day shipping a reality.
Cross-Sells and Upsells
You can add serious numbers to each sale you make if you design your site so that it’s optimized for cross-product promotion. Links that take users to relevant products or even automated chatbots that will suggest the right product at the right time in the sales funnel can dramatically transform your sales figures. If you don’t make an upsell when the shopper is still browsing your pages, you still have an opportunity if you’re using a post-purchase email strategy.
Payment Options
People want to pay in a way that suits their needs the most. That means you need to be able to provide those options. If you have a potential customer that wants to pay with PayPal, but you don’t give them that option, then they might simply head elsewhere. A good strategy here is to conduct regular market research into your audience. Find out more about their preferred ways to pay, and you’ll have a better idea of which options you need to include.
With these basics, the foundation of your e-commerce store will be much more secure. You will still need to make sure that you’re looking ahead at including blogs, customer reviews, and social media buttons for easier sharing, but this foundation will allow you to build and get even better. Get the basics right, and the growth of your e-commerce brand will be much more viable.
