2021 E-commerce Tips

After the year we’ve just had, we’re sure you can now see why more and more individuals are shopping online rather than on the high street. The most blatant reason is that the High Street shops have been shut for the majority of the last 12 months.

This reason alone is enough to understand that 2021 should be the year that building your e-commerce store take a front seat.

E-commerce websites do not only have to sell physical products. They can sell services, appointments, digital products and more. These types of sites not only widen your reach beyond a brick and mortar store, but it allows you to be available and offering your products & services 24 hours of the day.

We offer you these tips to ensure your commerce business is taking full advantage of the opportunity presented.

Are your products optimised?

High res images, clear product descriptions, user-generated reviews,
If you viewed your products for the first time, would they leave a good impression? Do they have high-resolution images to make the product perfectly viewable, clear product descriptions for the audience to fully understand the specifications of the product, are there enough highly rated user reviews for the audience to feel comfortable parting ways with their money?

Reducing cart abandonment

There is a high percentage of drop-offs on the cart page, meaning that your potential customer got to the point of adding the products to the cart, intending to purchase them and changed their mind halfway through. There can be many reasons for this, for example; they weren’t ready to purchase it, they changed their mind due to the value of the cart, they got distracted by something else and closed the tab accidentally, and many more.

Think about your landing pages

Structuring your site in a way that allows you to have landing pages for key categories and product types mean you can gain customer solely for these pages and can advertise these products to sub-audiences within your customers.

Are you using email marketing?

We’re a huge fan of email marketing, particularly automated campaigns that keep in touch with the customer when they are at a particular point in their customer journey. Extending on our point from earlier, cart abandonment is just one reason you can contact your customer. Others are for informing them of a new product launch, requesting their feedback, giving them an overview of their recent purchase and so much more.

Have you thought about these features?

Different shipping options;

Sometimes shipping can be difficult to predict, products are different sizes and weights, and some customers prefer not to wait. Having a thorough list of options on how to get your products delivered that can suit any type of customer allows them to feel in control. Think of elected day delivery, local pick-up or free shipping options.

A rewards system;

Ecommerce stores work well when there is repeat custom. Offering your customers rewards for completing certain actions on your site and then exchanging these rewards for coupons to use to purchase products gives your customer a reason to return. Customers having leftover points in their account, also offers you the opportunity to reach out to them through email reminding them of you and what you offer.

Collaborations;

Are you on the lookout for collaborations with other companies who you may share the same message with? Or a brand that would complement yours as much as yours would theirs? Linking up with other businesses allows you to build your customer base and showcase your products to a whole new audience.

Buy now, pay later;

With providers like Klarna and Clearpay. It’s now possible to pay for your products in instalments while removing the risk from yourself. Customers opt to pay through these methods, these providers pay you and the customer signs an agreement with these providers to pay the full amount in instalments. Clearpay offers 4 instalment method, while Klarna offers a finance method, alongside a 3 instalment or a 30-day payment method. This offers flexibility in payment from your customer base.

Follow up emails;

Do you follow up with your customers after they’ve purchased, either asking for a review or seeing if they are interested in another product? Providing a follow up allows them to know you’re thinking of them and increases the likelihood of returning to your store.

Are you even online yet?

Have you taken the next step to get your business online? If you’d like to find out how we can assist you with this, please get in touch with one of the team – info@clabacreative.co.uk