How to improve website conversions

[Kal]

Hi,

could anyone give me some tips on improving my website conversions please?

When I look at my basket stats I have customers who add to basket and get to the check out only to abandon. I have free UK postage and 14 day no quibble refund but what else can I do?

many thanks,

Kal

 

[BartJr]

Pm your website, hard to say anything without seeing it

 

[OllyH]

Agreed, post a link and we may be able to help

 

[LowPrices.uk]

There's a lot you can do, see:

http://www.webref.eu/conversion-rate-optimisation.php

 

[Kal]

Thank you very much for your replies, I will take a good look and see what I can improve on.

Kal

 

[RepricerExpress]

Hi Kal

It's hard to give specific advice without seeing your website.

Here's some general tips to help avoid/reduce abandonment rate, some of which may be suitable for your business.

• provide free shipping for a minimum spend amount
  
• remove any hidden charges
• minimise the checkout process
• offer a guest checkout option
• offer multiple payment options, Paypal etc.

Hopefully some of these may provide some food for thought.

 

[Nochexman]

Do you have analytics set-up on your website? Always a good idea to understand how long people spend on certain pages as a possible explanation as to why things don't convert.

 

[Kal]

Thank you very much for replying. I do have both Google analytics and Statcounter. I find Google just too complicated.

I offer paypal as a method of payment, would it be worth adding another? I did have Google Wallet as well until they discontinued it but I found that very nearly everyone would use Paypal.

Kal

 

[Nochexman]

Some people prefer not to use Paypal, so having an alternative could make a difference. But, given that I work for an alternative payment solution, you do need to do your own research!

 

[Kal]

Mmmm okay, I'll look into that. The thing with Paypal is that you don't have to have an account with them to use it.

Kal

 

[Jason L]

When I look at my basket stats I have customers who add to basket and get to the check out only to abandon

Hi Kal, bear in mind you will always get a % abandonment and it may be much higher than you think. Google 'cart abandonment rate' to get an idea. A number of stats have it at around the 66% mark (i.e. 2/3rds of users abandon!). Having said that I'm sure there is scope to improve upon your current rate. I haven't seen your site but would look at the following:

1. Simplify the checkout process
2. Be clear about shipping charges (in your case free!) and timeframes (and make these clear before checkout process too - some users only go through the checkout to try and find out delivery charges)
3. How easy is it for people to checkout on mobile?
4. Put card logos in checkout flow to give customers confidence
5. Have a guest checkout

Basically, try as hard as possible not to give the user a reason to abandon. Also, I know it seems obvious but see what other successful sites do - take the best bits and implement them for your own site

 

[Nochexman]

...The thing with Paypal is that you don't have to have an account with them to use it.

Curiously, one of the things about PayPal is that people think that they do need an account to use it!

 

[antropy]

I'd recommend signing up to the forum as a full member so that you can get a site review.

Could also be worth checking out the marketing grader in my signature.

 

[lizinbiz]

Do you follow Neil Patel at QuickSprout ? Probably best site on the net for open and honest advice about conversion rate optimization.

 

[Kal]

Thank you for all your replies, they have all been really helpful.

best regards,

Kal

 

[14Steve14]

Have you tried contacting those that abandoned their carts and ask them why. I did it on my site, and still do, and was really surprised at some of the answers I got. Many have been mentioned above but the one I thought really funny was that I was asking for too much information on the checkout page. This one particular customer could not see the point of giving me their address and why I needed to keep it in a database. Made me laugh anyway.

 

[Kal]

I wish I could contact them because I think that would be great to hear the reasons why. Unfortunately I can't do this with my site. Do you ask people to sign in before they add to basket?

 

[Nochexman]

Which shopping cart are you using?

 

[14Steve14]

I can only contact them after they have created an account and then left the site, or logged in to an existing account.

 

[Karl B]

Do you use any abandoned cart software to email people who have left the website at the basket? There are some good tools out there, we've started using Nosto which is free to sign up then they take a small percentage of the sale price

 

[Kal]

Thank you Karl B for that; I didn't know that software existed. I will definitely be looking at Nosto.

What sort of reaction have you received when you've contacted people, did they mind?

Thank you everyone for your help, I really appreciate it.

Kal

 

[Karl B]

Thank you Karl B for that; I didn't know that software existed. I will definitely be looking at Nosto.

What sort of reaction have you received when you've contacted people, did they mind?

Thank you everyone for your help, I really appreciate it.

Kal

It has definitely helped increase conversions. It's just another form of remarketing so people are quite used to receiving emails like them. It's worth a try because if you don't make any sales from them you don't pay anything.

 

[Alby10]

As mentioned it is difficult to say, but generally the key elements are to ensure that your sales process/funnel has sold your product to the extent that your conversions increase. If its not convincing enough, then what you describe will happen. On the other hand it could simply be a case of having several payment options. Paypal is a useful option, but as highlighted, it is not to everyone's taste and certainly there are some common misconceptions which could be causing second thoughts.

One element that I have found that works well in terms of increasing conversions is adding an involvement device. In essence it provides interactivity and user engagement, both of which, increase sales conversions.

 

[Nochexman]

What sort of reaction have you received when you've contacted people, did they mind?

Contacting customers is something that we do for our merchants. Curiously, I have found that most people are quite flattered to be asked about their experience, and surprisingly they have a very good recollection when they do not complete the transaction. I would definitely contact customers, successful and unsuccessful, as they can be very helpful in describing to you what works and what doesn't on your website!